King Fahad International Airport
After its construction it became a US airbase used primarily during the Gulf War, the airport has been overseeing commercial operations since 28 November 1999 and has since expanded to provide connections to 43 destinations. Before King Fahd International, the primary airport serving the region was the much busier Dhahran International Airport, which has since been converted for military use and is now designated the King Abdulaziz Air Base. Since 1 July 2017, the airport has been operated and managed by the Dammam Airports Company (DACO). Commercial transport was only halted once throughout the history of the airport when, on 21 March 2020, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) announced the suspension of all domestic and international travel both within and to and from the kingdom due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Domestic operations were reinitiated on 31 May 2020, and international operations resumed on 17 May 2021.
The third largest airport in the kingdom by passenger volume, more than 10 million passengers use King Fahd International each year, and 37 airlines operate flights in and out of the airport. The airport serves as a hub to Flynas and Flyadeal. It previously served as a hub to Saudia as well as the now defunct Sama airline and SaudiGulf Airlines. In addition to these airlines, Saudi Aramco Aviation, the airline operated by Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil giant, uses it to transport employees in and out of strategic locations such as Yanbu, Tanajib and Shaybah.
The airport is served by two runways; both 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) long, and consists of three terminal buildings: the Passenger Terminal serves mainstream passengers, the Aramco Terminal is used exclusively by Aramco employees to board Saudi Aramco Aviation flights and the Royal Terminal is reserved for use by the Saudi royal family. The busiest route operated between Dammam and another city is round trip to Dubai, with 70 weekly flights, an average of 10 flights a day.
History
Bottom: A MIM-104 Patriot missile battery near the airport. The terminal building and mosque can be seen in the background.
The airport is named for King Fahd (r. 1982–2005), under whose reign it was constructed and inaugurated. Design of the airport building began in 1976. The site master plan was created by architecture firm Yamasaki & Associates and Boeing and completed in 1977, with construction beginning in 1983. The basic infrastructure of the airport was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the U.S-led coalition forces to use the airport during the Gulf War in early 1991 for the storage of military aircraft, including 144 A-10 Thunderbolt IIs, among other aircraft such as the AH-64 Apaches and CH-47 Chinooks of the 101st Airborne Division, before operations were transferred to the Ahmad al-Jaber Air Base in Kuwait.
The General Authority of Civil Aviation of Saudi Arabia inaugurated the King Fahd International Airport and opened it to commercial traffic on 28 November 1999, and all airlines transferred their operations from the Dhahran International Airport, which had been in use until then. Dhahran International has since been converted for military usage and was designated the King Abdulaziz Air Base.
As part of the Saudi Vision 2030 and the National Transformation Program, King Fahd International was corporatized in July 2017 under the Dammam Airports Company (DACO), which operates and maintains the airport. In an effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, all domestic and international flights were suspended until further notice on 21 March 2020. Following strict curfews and lowering in case numbers, domestic flights were allowed to operate once again on 31 May 2020. International flights were finally resumed on 18 May 2021.
Structure and Facilities
 |
The airport is classified as Code E by the ICAO which means aircraft such as the Boeing 747-400 and A340-600 could be easily accommodated. It is practically possible for an A380 to use the airport, but this is not recommended, as, in order to accommodate such aircraft, an airport is required to be Code F; only the runways at Dammam Airport meet Code F requirements; the taxiways and gates do not.
Terminals
The six-story main terminal building has a total area of 327,000 m (3,520,000 sq ft). Approximately 247,500 m (2,664,000 sq ft) were built in the first phase, in addition to 11 fixed passenger boarding bridges serving 15 gates. The original design included 31 fixed boarding bridges. The departure terminal is equipped with several customer counters of which 66 were allocated to Saudia (now shared with flynas), 44 to foreign airlines, and the rest for customs and immigration.
Duty Free Stores
King Fahd International Airport was the first Saudi airport to adopt duty-free stores. In addition to the spaces allocated to duty-free stores, the airport has a separate area for shops specializing in the sale of gifts and all passenger-related goods. This area includes restaurants, cafeterias, and banks, and is located on the arrivals level.
Aramco Terminal
The private airline operated by Saudi Aramco, Saudi Aramco Aviation, operates out of the Aramco Terminal, providing connections to its employees to faraway company locations such as in Yanbu, Tanajib, Shaybah and Haradh, in addition to some remote pump stations, using their own fleet of Boeing 737s and Embraer ERJ-170LRs.
Royal Terminal
The Royal Terminal is reserved for the royal family of Saudi Arabia, government personnel, and official guests. It covers an area of 16,400 m (177,000 sq ft) and has four bridges linking the terminal to aircraft. It is luxuriously furnished and decorated, and includes extensively landscaped exteriors and grounds. Despite its specialized purpose, the terminal is rarely used by the royal family, who generally prefer to utilize a similar special terminal at King Abdulaziz Air Base.
Runways
The airport has two parallel runways with a length of 4,000 m (13,123 ft) each: 16L/34R and 16R/34L, in addition to taxiways parallel to the runways and a cross taxiway to connect the two runways. The two runways are separated by 2,146 m (7,041 ft). The east runway is generally used by Saudi Aramco while commercial airlines use the west one.
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Runways | 2 |
| Runway length | 4,000 m (13,000 ft) |
| Runway width | 60 m (200 ft) |
| Runway shoulders | 8 m (26 ft) x 2 |
| Runway paved blast pads | 120 m (390 ft) x 2 |
| Taxiway width | 22 m (72 ft) |
| Taxiway shoulders | 23 m (75 ft) x 2 |
| Precision Approach Lightning System | CAT II |
| Cross taxiway width | 28 m (92 ft) |
| Cross taxiway shoulders | 16 m (52 ft) x 2 |
| Remote aircraft stands | 30 Including Royal and Aramco Terminal |
| Airbridges | 11 Fixed + 19 Moving |
| Cargo aircraft stands | 9 |
| Aprons | 6 |
| Helipads | 2 |
Ground transportation
The terminal can only be accessed via Route 605, a secondary expressway linking the cities of Khobar and Dammam in the south, and Qatif in the north; to the airport. Route 6466, a minor road and spur of Highway 40, links the highway to Route 605 and the airport. SAPTCO offers bus connections from Khobar and Dammam to the airport. Taxis are available at fixed prices to every major city and town in the kingdom, with private companies such as Careem, a subsidiary of Uber, providing similar services.
Parking Facilities
The total area of the parking complex is 176,752 m (1,902,540 sq ft), distributed among three covered floors, with a maximum capacity of 4,930 cars. Two open parking areas are available beside the rentals to accommodate additional cars. Recently, a new long term Open Parking Area was opened to accommodate long term staying cars. Travelers can use the shuttle bus provided by the airport to go to the passenger terminal and come back.
The Airport Mosque
The Airport Mosque was built on the roof of the car park and in the middle of a landscaped area of 46,200 m (497,292 ft²). The architecture of the mosque is an amalgamation of modern architecture with traditional Islamic architectural elements. The mosque can accommodate up to 2,000 worshippers and access to it can be easily gained from the passenger terminal through two enclosed, air-conditioned bridges equipped with moving belts, in addition to a third open bridge.
Plant Nursery
The airport has its own plant nursery with a total area of 215,579 m (2,320,470 sq ft), which encompasses three greenhouses and 36,400 square metres (392,000 sq ft) of green fields. The nursery supplies the airport gardens and planted areas with trees and plants. The control tower stands 85.5 m (281 ft) high. The height allows visibility of all operational parts of the airport.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
Cargo
Statistics
At present, around 9.7 million passengers use King Fahd International Airport annually.
 | Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. Updates on reimplementing the Graph extension, which will be known as the Chart extension, can be found on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
| Year | Total passengers | % international | Passenger growth | Total cargo (tons) | Commercial aircraft movements | Movements growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 2,542,000 | 41% |  0.4% |
55,088 | 23,312 |  −2.5%
|
| 2002 | 2,578,000 | 39% | 1.4% |
53,029 | 23,281 | −0.1%
|
| 2003 | 2,613,000 | 40% | 1.4% |
48,634 | 23,308 | 0.1%
|
| 2004 | 2,782,000 | 41% | 6.5% |
48,065 | 23,778 | 2.0%
|
| 2005 | 3,013,000 | 40% | 8.3% |
49,633 | 24,457 | 2.9%
|
| 2006 | 3,341,000 | 43% | 10.9% |
59,610 | 29,162 | 19.2%
|
| 2007 | 4,092,000 | 41% | 15.0% |
67,427 | 48,653 | 34.6%
|
| 2008 | 4,165,000 | 47% | 1.1% |
97,596 | 50,926 | 3.9%
|
| 2009 | 4,422,000 | 48% | 6.8% |
83,652 | 51,166 | 0.7%
|
| 2010 | 4,835,000 | 52% | 10.1% |
83,426 | 56,156 | 10.8%
|
| 2011 | 5,531,000 | 56% | 15.3% |
82,832 | 62,060 | 11.9%
|
| 2012 | 6,422,000 | 56% | 16.5% |
103,421 | 67,390 | 9.6%
|
| 2013 | 7,311,000 | 55% | 19.1% |
121,655 | 72,897 | 9.3%
|
| 2014 | 8,248,000 | 54% | 12.8% |
115,830 | 79,284 | 9.8%
|
| 2015 | 9,407,000 | 53% | 14.0% |
95,321 | 84,803 | 7.8%
|
| 2016 | 9,690,000 | 53% | 3.0% |
138,870 | 90,134 | 6.3%
|
| Rank | City | Number of flights |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dubai,  United Arab Emirates
|
70 |
| 2 | Cairo,  Egypt
|
34 |
| 3 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
|
28 |
| 4 | Bahrain,  Bahrain
|
28 |
| 5 | Delhi,  India
|
21 |
| 6 | Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
|
18 |
| 7 | Muscat,  Oman
|
16 |
| 8 | Mumbai, India
|
14 |
| 9 | Istanbul,  Turkey
|
14 |
Records
- King Fahd International Airport has been cited as the largest airport in the world by the Guinness World Records. At 776 km (300 sq mi), the property is larger than the neighboring country of Bahrain. However, the official website of the airport reports a utilized area of 3,675 hectares (9,080 acres), or 36.75 km (14.19 sq mi), which would make it the sixth-largest in the world.
- One of the world's shortest international flights is operated between King Fahd International Airport and the Bahrain International Airport, covering a great-circle distance of 87 km (54 mi).
Accidents and incidents
- On 29 August 2013, a Saudia Airbus A321-200 (registration HZ-ASL) operating as Flight 1126 from King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah to Dammam suffered multiple bird strikes as it flew through a flock of birds during approach. The aircraft safely landed at King Fahd International Airport and no injuries were reported.
- On 22 August 2016, a Qatar Airways Airbus A330-200 (registration A7-ACB) operating as Flight 1154 from Hamad International Airport in Doha to Dammam suffered a hydraulic leak upon landing on runway 16R. No injuries were reported.
- On 23 April 2017, a Saudia Airbus A330-300 (registration HZ-AQK) operating as Flight 768 from Jeddah to Chennai International Airport diverted to King Fahd International Airport after the pilots received indication of a landing gear malfunction approximately 180 nmi (330 km; 210 mi) east-southeast of Dammam. The flight entered a holding pattern for an hour and landed safely on runway 34R. There were 127 people on board and no injuries were reported.
- On 1 February 2020, a Saudia Boeing 747-400F (registration TC-MCT) operating as Flight 919 from Dammam to Zaragoza Airport in Spain suffered a tail strike during take-off on runway 16R. The flight was operated by Turkish cargo carrier Air ACT. The aircraft entered a holding pattern west of the airport before diverting to Jeddah and safely landing at King Abdulaziz International Airport three hours later.
- On 23 September 2023, an Egyptair Boeing 737-800 (registration SU-GED) operating as Flight 905 from Cairo International Airport to Dubai International Airport diverted to and safely landed at King Fahd International Airport due to a cracked window. There were 120 people on board and no injuries were reported.
- On 18 July 2024, the landing gear of a Nile Air Airbus A321-231 (registration SU-BQL) operating as Flight 232 from Dammam to Cairo International Airport caught fire during take-off on runway 34L. The pilots aborted the take-off and all 186 passengers and 8 crew members were evacuated safely, with no injuries reported.
See also
- List of airports in Saudi Arabia
- Saudia
- Amaala International Airport
- List of things named after Saudi Kings
- List of the busiest airports in the Middle East
References
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- ^ "Notice setting date for Saudi international flights 'is bogus'". Arab News. 12 August 2020. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
- ^ "Saudi airports, airlines resume international flights after COVID-19 suspension". 18 May 2021.
- ^ KFIA project summary, retrieved 29 December 2011
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- ^ "About Us | DACO". Retrieved 1 September 2020.
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- ^ "IndiGo to resume Lucknow to Dammam flight from March 20". AviationAll. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
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- ^ "Turkish LLC Pegasus launches flights to Muscat and Dammam". ftnnews.com. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
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- ^ Liu, Jim. "Salam Air schedules new routes in Nov 2019". Routesonline. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
- ^ "Saudia NW24 Beijing Service Changes". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
- ^ "Rebels said to enter Damascus as army reportedly abandons airport". www.timesofisrael.com. The Times of Israel. 8 December 2024. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
- ^ Godinho, Varun. "Wizz Air to launch flights between Saudi Arabia and Rome, Vienna". Business Traveller. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
- ^ "Home". Aerotranscargo.
- ^ "Flightradar24: Live Flight Tracker - Real-Time Flight Tracker Map".
- ^ "Statistics 2016". General Authority of Civil Aviation KSA.
- ^ Craig Glenday. Guinness World Records 2013. Ed. Random House LLC, 2013. ISBN 9780345547118. P. 320
- ^ Data Project Data. King Fahd International Airport. KFIA, Dammam, Eastern Province – Saudi Arabia. Total Airport Area 77,600 Hectares; Developer Areas; Total: 4,265 Hectares; Airport: 3,675 Hectares; Construction ; Support/Utility Plants: 51 Hectares; Community :80 Hectares
- ^ "The World's Shortest International Commercial Flights | Flight Routes | OAG". www.oag.com. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ "Incident: Saudia A321 at Dammam on Aug 29th 2013, bird strike". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ "Incident: Qatar A332 at Dammam on Aug 22nd 2016, hydraulic leak". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ "Incident: Saudia A333 near Dammam on Apr 23rd 2017, gear problem". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ "Accident: ACT B744 at Dammam and Jeddah on Feb 1st 2020, tail strike on departure". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
- ^ "Incident: Egypt B738 near Dammam on Sep 23rd 2023, cracked window". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ "Nile Air plane catches fire during takeoff from Dammam airport". Saudigazette. 18 July 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ "Location of the Airport". world-airport-codes. Archived from the original on 21 January 2010.
- ^ "Destinations Worldwide". theAirDB.
External links
Media related to King Fahd International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
- FlightRadar24 Live Movement of KFIA
- King Fahd International Airport
- Airport information for OEDF at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
- Current weather for OEDF at NOAA/NWS
- Accident history for DMM at Aviation Safety Network
