Singapore Airlines has delayed the restart of Riyadh flights by three months, with services now set to begin on 1st September 2026.
Singapore Airlines has postponed the launch of its new Riyadh service from 2nd June 2026 to 1st September 2026, no doubt as a consequence of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East region.
The three-month delay follows yesterday’s confirmation that SIA has also extended the suspension of its Dubai route until at least 1st June 2026, while downgrading from the Airbus A380 to a Boeing 777-300ER for the summer season, based on the same geopolitical issues.
We’d flagged the Riyadh postponement as a likely one in yesterday’s article, noting that the airline had been restricting Riyadh bookings to only the most expensive ‘Z’ and ‘Y’ Flexi fare classes in Business Class and Economy Class respectively through to the end of August 2026 – typically a strong indicator that a September start was the likely plan.
That’s now been confirmed.
The Riyadh route
Singapore Airlines announced the return of Riyadh flights back in February, marking a comeback after a 12-year absence from the Saudi capital. The service was originally set to begin on 2nd June 2026.
(Photo: Shutterstock)
The plan remains the same in all other respects, with four-times weekly non-stop flights using the Airbus A350 Medium Haul, configured with 40 Business Class seats (2018 RJ) and 263 in Economy Class, operating as SQ498 and SQ499.
Riyadh will still be SIA’s longest route to feature the 2018 Regional Business Class product, with flight times stretching to nearly nine hours in the winter months, though a recent announcement for the type’s deployment on new flights to and from Western Sydney Airport is also a notably long stretch for the type, at up to 8 hours 20 minutes.
Revised schedule
Here’s the updated schedule for SIA’s Riyadh service, now starting on 1st September 2026.
Singapore Riyadh
1 Sep 2026 – 24 Oct 2026
| Days | |||||||||
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S | |||
 |
SQ498 A350 MH |
||||||||
| SIN 18:20 |
RUH 21:45 |
||||||||
| Duration: 08:25 | |||||||||
Riyadh Singapore
1 Sep 2026 – 24 Oct 2026
| Days | |||||||||
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S | |||
|
SQ499 A350 MH |
||||||||
| RUH 23:00 |
SIN 12:15* |
||||||||
| Duration: 08:15 | |||||||||
* Next day
From 25th October 2026, timings adjust slightly for the winter season, with departures from Singapore at 5.40pm and from Riyadh at 10.50pm. The same four days of operation continue year-round through to March 2027.
What it means for award bookings
When we last checked in February, SIA had loaded generous KrisFlyer award availability on the route, with four immediately confirmable Saver Business Class seats on most flights.
All June through August flights have now been completely removed from the booking system, and of course that includes KrisFlyer award inventory. If you’d already redeemed miles for travel during this period, or bought a cash ticket on this route, expect to be contacted by the airline with rebooking or refund options.
Award space on this route still looks plentiful from the revised start date, based on searches for four passengers in Business Class.
KrisFlyer awards
As a reminder, here are the one-way KrisFlyer redemption rates you’ll pay by cabin on the Singapore – Riyadh route (Zone 10).
| KrisFlyer Redemption Rates One-Way Singapore ⇄ Riyadh |
||||
| Airline / Cabin | Saver | Advantage | Access | |
 |
Economy | 32,000 |
66,500 |
95,500 |
|
Business | 68,000 |
122,000 |
157,500 to 251,500 |
Interestingly SIA will offer the only KrisFlyer award option within the group to and from Saudi Arabia – Scoot excludes its Jeddah service from redemption bookings.
As you can see, you’re looking at 68,000 KrisFlyer miles each way for a saver award seat in Business Class.
(Photo: MainlyMiles)
Taxes and fees come to S$68 in the Singapore – Riyadh direction and SAR 173 (around S$58) in the return direction.
Note that Singapore’s SAF levy will now apply to redemptions made on or after 1st October 2026, for travel on or after 1st January 2027, six months later than originally planned. That adds S$25.60 in Business Class or S$6.40 in Economy Class in the Singapore – Riyadh direction.
Singapore Airlines has delayed the launch of its Riyadh service by three months, from 2nd June 2026 to 1st September 2026, as the Middle East conflict continues to disrupt the carrier’s flying schedule in the region.
The same four-times weekly Airbus A350 Medium Haul service is planned, and award availability continues to be generous as we saw when the route was first loaded, so this should be more of a timing shift than a fundamental change to the route’s prospects.
Between the extended Dubai suspension and the Riyadh postponement, SIA’s Middle East operations are effectively on hold for now, but the airline is clearly keeping both routes in its network plans for the longer term.
(Cover Photo: Adelaide Airport)
