In April 2025, King Khalid International Airport in Saudi Arabia achieved 90% punctuality, the highest on-time departure rate among the Kingdom’s international airports. The General Authority of Civil Aviation’s monthly report further stated that the hub located in Riyadh performed better than bigger airports like King Abdulaziz International in Jeddah.
The report was released as Saudi Arabia continues to advance operational improvements under its National Aviation Strategy, which is a component of the larger Vision 2030 plan to establish the Kingdom as a hub for regional air transportation.
“The report issued in April 2025 indicated that King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, Abha International Airport, NEOM International Airport, Turaif Airport, and Wadi Al-Dawasir Airport topped the advanced positions in the report,” the SPA report stated.
Matarat Holding compiled the data used to create the rankings, with the exception of cancelled flights. When flights leave or arrive within 15 minutes of their scheduled times, performance is evaluated. King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah had a 78% punctuality rate in the group of international airports that handle more than 15 million passengers a year, the study found.
King Fahd International Airport in Dammam achieved the highest ranking among international airports that serve between 5 million and 15 million passengers annually, with an on-time performance of 87%. The rate at Madinah’s Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport, which is also included in this category, was 72%.
In the segment of international airports accommodating between two million and five million passengers annually, Abha International Airport posted the highest punctuality rate at 91%. This was followed by King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Airport in Jizan with 90%, and Tabuk Airport with 82%. NEOM Bay International Airport led among international airports with fewer than two million passengers annually, achieving a 95% on-time departure rate. Other strong performers in this category included Al-Ahsa International Airport at 93% and Najran Airport at 89%.
Turaif and Wadi Al-Dawasir airports also recorded perfect performance among domestic flight hubs, achieving 100% on-time departures. King Saud bin Abdulaziz Airport in Al-Baha followed closely with 99%, while Bisha Airport posted 94%. At the airline level, national flag carrier Saudia reported an 89% on-time rate for arrivals and departures. Meanwhile, Flynas achieved 86% for arrivals and 91% for departures, while Flyadeal recorded 87% and 91%, respectively.
Regarding specific flight routes, the Riyadh–Abha domestic passage maintained a strong on-time departure rate of 96%. Other high-performing domestic routes included Riyadh–Tabuk and Riyadh–Dammam, both at 96%, while the Jizan–Riyadh route sustained its previous month’s rate of 95%.
Internationally, the Riyadh–Amman route recorded the highest on-time performance at 97%, followed by Riyadh–Bahrain at 94%, Riyadh–Dubai at 93%, and Riyadh–Kuwait at 92%. The Jeddah–Amman route also achieved a 94% punctuality rate.