Departure
97%
vs 95% ▲ 2
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
King Abdulaziz International Airport (OEJN) is the major gateway serving Jeddah and the holy city of Mecca on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast, and one of the busiest hubs in the Middle East. It offers three long parallel runway pairs with full instrument approaches, making it a significant destination for simulator pilots wanting to fly large commercial types into a Hajj-era hub.
King Abdulaziz International Airport, generally known as KAIA or Jeddah Airport, lies just north of Jeddah in the Mecca Region of Saudi Arabia. It is the principal hub of Saudia, the national flag carrier, and also serves as an operating base for the low-cost carriers Flynas and Flyadeal. The field is notable for its role in the annual Hajj pilgrimage, its enormous scale, and its trio of very long parallel runways, all of which make it an interesting and demanding destination for simulator pilots flying heavy jet traffic.
The airport sits around 19 kilometres north of the city of Jeddah on the Red Sea coast, in the Mecca Region of Saudi Arabia. It shares its airfield with the Royal Saudi Air Force's King Abdullah Air Base, so pilots should expect mixed civil and military operations at the same site. Given its size and traffic volumes, the airport lies within controlled airspace with a full suite of approach, tower and ground services, described below.
King Abdulaziz International Airport has three physical runways, all hard-surfaced, lit and equipped with ILS. The longest pair, 16L/34R, measures 13,135 feet. Alongside it, 16C/34C runs to 13,131/13,132 feet. The third pair, 16R/34L, is slightly shorter at 12,479 feet. All three runways are oriented on the same 16/34 axis, giving three parallel strips available for arrivals and departures.
Jeddah Approach is available on 119.1 MHz, 123.8 MHz (Jeddah Director) and 124 MHz. The airport ATIS broadcasts on 126.2 MHz. Clearance delivery is provided on 121.8 MHz (Jeddah Clearance). Ground movements are handled on 121.6 MHz, 121.7 MHz and 121.9 MHz, all listed under Jeddah Ground/Tower. Tower frequencies are 118.2 MHz and 124.3 MHz, both under the callsign Jeddah Tower. All three runway pairs are equipped with ILS, supporting instrument approaches in low visibility.
Before the current airport was built, Jeddah and the surrounding region were served by the original Jeddah International Airport, also known as Kandara Airport, in the southern part of the city. Saudia, the Saudi flag carrier, was established in 1946 and began operating from that earlier field, carrying Hajj pilgrims first from Lod in Mandatory Palestine and later from further afield. Plans for a new airport north of the city were first drawn up in 1965, and after a series of revised proposals the site north of Jeddah was selected in 1974 under the government's Airports Development Program, with construction beginning the following year under the German contractor Hochtief. Runway and taxiway lighting was installed by Kirkpatrick, and construction was completed in 1980. King Khaled and Crown Prince Fahd formally inaugurated the airport on 12 April 1981, naming it after the kingdom's founder, King Abdulaziz, and it opened for scheduled service on 31 May 1981, after which the old Kandara Airport was demolished. The airport has always shared its airfield with the Royal Saudi Air Force's King Abdullah Air Base. In 2022, DAA International, a company owned by the Irish state, was awarded a five-year contract to manage and operate the airport.
King Abdulaziz International Airport is the busiest airport in Saudi Arabia and one of the busiest in the Middle East, driven in large part by its central role in the annual Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages to Mecca. It is the largest hub for Saudia and also serves as an operating base for the low-cost carriers Flynas and Flyadeal. Passenger operations are concentrated at Terminal 1, a very large facility opened in 2019 that replaced the former South Terminal, alongside a dedicated Hajj Terminal built to handle the seasonal surge in pilgrim traffic. Management of the airport has been contracted to DAA International since 2022.