Saudi airport awarded title of Most...

Riyadh’s King Khalid Airport scoops award in 16th Cirium On-Time Performance Review

Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport has been awarded the title of the Most On-Time Global Airport in the 16th Cirium On-Time Performance Review, with 86.65% of flights departing on time.

The airport also won in the best Large Airport category.

There was further good news for the kingdom’s booming aviation industry with national carrier Saudia being named the second best global airline for on-time performance, marginally behind Aeromexico and ahead of Qatar Airways in fifth place.

“In an industry defined by operational complexity, we are extremely proud to be celebrating the airlines and airports who have provided customers the most on-time flights and best performance in 2024, acknowledging their operational excellence,” said Jeremy Bowen, CEO of Cirium, the industry benchmark for monitoring global airline performance.

“Last year was difficult for airlines, facing a large-scale IT outage, and unseasonable and severe weather patterns. Despite these challenges, these airlines and airports have worked tirelessly to ensure their customers have a smooth journey and reach their destination on-time.”

The Cirium On-Time Performance Review uses data from more than 600 real-time feeds, including airlines, airports, global distribution systems and civil aviation authorities.

An On-Time Arrival is defined as when a passenger flight arrives at the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled arrival time. Similarly, an On-Time Departure is when a flight departs the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled departure time. On-time arrivals are used to rank airlines, and on-time departures are used to rank airports.

Riyadh Airport’s on-time departure record of 86.65% in 2024 was across 240,990 tracked flights, serving 115 routes. This put the airport two percentage points above second-placed Lima, and five percentage points ahead of regional competitor Doha.

These are exciting times for Saudi aviation as the kingdom aims to achieve 330 million passengers by 2030, and with Riyadh Air due to launch operations in 2025.

For more on Riyadh King Khalid International Airport, visit www.kkia.sa/en

DISCOVER LUXURY AT LA VALLÉE VILLAGE