Why Couldn't They Stop the Houthi Missile That Flew 1,000 Km? Saudi Arabia Launches Investigation

Saudi Arabia has launched an internal investigation into why its air defense system failed to intercept missile and drone attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels, the Associated Press reported on the 13th, local time.

The move appears to reflect a serious realization regarding the state of its air defense posture after a major civilian casualty incident occurred on the 10th, when a Houthi rebel attack on King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital of Riyadh left 13 people dead and over 300 injured.

While the Saudi military has previously emphasized and announced that it intercepted most of the Houthi airstrikes, the recent massive casualties effectively amount to classifying the incident as a response failure.

The distance between the Houthi rebels' missile launch site and Riyadh is about 1,000 kilometers, a range that the fastest ballistic missiles can cover in just a few minutes.

The time required for a Patriot air defense system to detect and intercept a ballistic missile is roughly a few dozen seconds, and this window becomes even shorter as the missile's flight distance increases.

For cruise missiles, the time required for interception is generally known to be around 1 minute and 30 seconds.

Citing sources, the Associated Press reported that preliminary investigation results show the Houthi rebels first launched multiple drones to jam the air defense network before firing a mix of ballistic and cruise missiles at King Khalid International Airport.

The sources added that the Houthis possess advanced weapons equipped with maneuvering warheads that change direction during flight alongside ballistic missiles, making it difficult for Saudi Arabia's Patriot air defense system to block them.

One source told the AP that the investigation is also examining whether the air defense network failed to provide earlier warnings of the attack.

Reuters pointed out that although Riyadh was targeted by airstrikes four times over the past week, air raid alerts were not issued to the general public.

In connection with this, Middle East officials and political analysts told Reuters that questions have been raised about how vulnerable Saudi Arabia is to attacks and its ability to protect residents and visitors, adding that the authorities strive to maintain a routine atmosphere.

The implication is that air raid sirens were withheld to project an image of calm to its citizens and the international community.

Regarding the recent series of airstrikes, the General Authority of Civil Aviation of Saudi Arabia has decided to close King Khalid International Airport until midnight on the 18th, local time.

Currently, aircraft are bypassing Saudi airspace, and flights bound for Riyadh are landing at Jeddah Airport.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.