▲ King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, following an airstrike (File photo)
As attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels intensify, the demand for private jets among the wealthy trying to leave Saudi Arabia has surged, causing charter costs to spike by more than 50 percent, the Financial Times reported on the 20th local time.
According to private jet broker Luxaviation, the charter fee for a 14-seat jet flying from Al-Qassim Airport north of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to Geneva, Switzerland, reached 94,000 euros (approximately 140 million won) last week.
This compares to about 60,000 euros (approximately 90 million won) before King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh was closed due to Houthi attacks.
The sharp rise in private jet rates is attributed to the complete suspension of commercial flights, as operations at King Khalid International Airport have been entirely halted since the 10th due to consecutive airstrikes by Houthi rebels.
Following the airport closure, more than 5,500 commercial flights have been canceled at major Saudi airports, and major Western airlines such as Lufthansa, Air France, and British Airways have also suspended or delayed their routes to Saudi Arabia.
Foreign corporate executives and wealthy individuals staying in Riyadh are traveling to the smaller Al-Qassim Airport, located over 320 kilometers to the north, to charter private jets.
Those who cannot afford private jet costs are traveling by land to neighboring Bahrain or Qatar to attempt departure.
Charles Robinson, CEO of private jet booking platform Access Jet, said, "Charter fees for private jets heading from Saudi Arabia to Europe have soared up to 150,000 dollars (about 200 million won), and short-haul routes to the nearby United Arab Emirates (UAE) cost between 30,000 and 50,000 dollars (40 million to 65 million won)." He added, "Prices are being driven up as demand crowds in while the number of available jets is limited."
Additionally, soaring "war risk" insurance premiums that airlines must bear are further pushing up private jet charter rates.
According to the brokerage industry, for large 18-seat jets, additional insurance premiums alone reach up to 20,000 dollars (about 27 million won) per one-way trip, with insurance accounting for about 10 percent of the total operational cost.
However, the newspaper added that while many Western companies are evacuating top executives to Dubai, UAE, or exploring returns to their home countries, it has not yet reached the scale of the massive exodus seen earlier this year when tens of thousands fled at once following the outbreak of the Iran war.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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