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At least 134 Bangladesh-linked flights have been disrupted due to tighter operating restrictions and limitations at Saudi Arabian airports, affecting 20,254 passengers travelling between Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia.
The disruptions involve 61 direct flights and 73 transit services routed through other countries.
Muhammad Kawser Mahmud, public relations officer of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), confirmed the figures on Wednesday, saying both direct and transit operations had been affected.
According to CAAB data, state-owned Biman Bangladesh Airlines suffered the highest number of disruptions among carriers operating direct flights, with 22 services affected.
Saudi Arabian Airlines, or Saudia, recorded 19 disrupted flights, while US-Bangla Airlines and Riyadh Air each reported 10.
Transit flights hit
Transit services have also faced significant disruptions, with 73 flights routed through other countries affected.
Indian private carrier IndiGo recorded the highest number of disruptions in this category, with 28 flights affected.
The other affected services included 14 Emirates flights, nine Qatar Airways flights, eight flydubai flights, seven SalamAir flights from Oman, six Air India flights and one EgyptAir flight.
Passengers face uncertainty
The cancellations and repeated schedule changes have caused considerable inconvenience for expatriate workers travelling to Saudi Arabia and passengers waiting to return to Bangladesh.
Many travellers have faced uncertainty over flight schedules, with passengers arriving at airports struggling to confirm the latest status of their services.
CAAB’s figures did not specify the exact reasons for the restrictions, how long they might continue or when normal flight operations would resume.