King Fahd International Airport Guide

King Fahd International Airport opened on 28 November 1999, replacing the older Dhahran International Airport that had served the Eastern Province since 1962. Planning began in the 1970s and construction started in 1983; when the new airport opened, all commercial flights transferred from Dhahran, which was later converted into the King Abdulaziz Air Base. Dammam Airports Company operates the site under the ownership of the General Authority of Civil Aviation.

The airport covers about 776 square kilometers, most of it undeveloped land, making it one of the largest airports in the world by area. Two parallel runways, each four kilometers long, support both commercial traffic and Saudi Aramco Aviation flights. Passengers pass through a six-story building with 15 gates and 11 boarding bridges; Saudi Aramco Aviation and the Saudi royal family each use separate facilities elsewhere on the site, including a 16,400-square-metre building with four jet bridges reserved for VIP flights.

Saudia and Flynas anchor operations at Dammam, alongside Flyadeal and a mix of regional and international carriers linking the Eastern Province to destinations across the Middle East, Asia and Europe. Passenger numbers reached 12.8 million in 2024, a 15 percent rise on the year before, as the airport recorded more than 99,000 flights. Jeddah is the busiest route overall, while Cairo leads international traffic, reflecting strong business travel demand from the oil and petrochemical industries clustered around Dammam, Khobar and Dhahran.