American carriers have been told to take greater care on journeys that land in Saudi Arabia or pass through its skies. The US FAA Saudi Arabia flight warning, sent on Sunday by the Federal Aviation Administration, ties those concerns to military operations that are still under way and to interference with navigation systems, Business Recorder reported. The alert runs until December 10. ARY News reported the same core point: the FAA wants airlines to exercise caution.
What the notice covers
The FAA is the US government body that regulates civil flying. A Notice to Airmen is the bulletin it uses to flag a hazard before departure. Business Recorder quoted the agency warning that threats "could pose a potential risk to aircraft at all altitudes, including overflight, the arrival, and departure phases of flight." The FAA called it a "potentially hazardous situation."
The instruction reaches further than branded US passenger airlines. It also binds operators of aeroplanes on the US register, Business Recorder said, so cargo jets and other US-registered aircraft are inside the same caution.
Strikes on the Riyadh airport
Business Recorder linked the notice to attacks on Riyadh's international airport on Saturday and on Sunday. Saturday's strike left 13 people dead and more than 300 wounded, the paper said.
Flights at the airport stayed suspended until at least 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Monday, according to the report. That clock is used in the eastern United States and sits several hours behind Pakistan.
Routes planned by US carriers
On October 23, Delta Air Lines is due to open a nonstop service from Atlanta to Riyadh. The company had not replied to a comment request by Sunday, Business Recorder reported. A week earlier, chief executive Ed Bastian told CNBC that "safety is going to make the call" on whether Delta goes ahead.
Large US airlines already place passengers into Riyadh on codeshare tickets, where one carrier sells the seat and a partner may operate the aircraft. The US FAA Saudi Arabia flight warning therefore sits on top of existing partnerships as well as Delta's new plan, and it covers planes that only overfly the kingdom.
FedEx opened its first dedicated Saudi service in September 2025, the paper said. A Boeing 777 freighter runs six times a week, tying the Americas and Europe to Riyadh and continuing to Guangzhou and Shanghai.
What is not in the reports
The two reports do not say that US airlines have cancelled their Saudi Arabia flights as a group. They describe a caution, grounded in military activity and navigation interference, rather than a shutdown of all commercial traffic. On Saudi Arabia flight safety, the published text is a hazard notice, not an all-clear.
The US FAA Saudi Arabia flight warning remains dated through December 10. Pakistani travellers will not find a carrier-by-carrier list in these accounts, so anyone holding a ticket should ask their airline directly.
