Sana'a International Airport SAH / OYSN

Yemen's historic primary international gateway and Yemenia's main hub, opened in 1964 at 7,216 ft (2,199 m) - one of the highest-elevation airports in the Arabian Peninsula, a factor for aircraft performance planning. Before the civil war it handled roughly 1.7 million passengers a year (2007), about 80% of Yemen's air traffic; that collapsed after Houthi forces seized Sana'a in 2014-15, splitting Yemen's civil aviation administration between a Houthi-run CAMA in Sana'a and the internationally recognized government's CAMA now based in Aden/Seiyun. Commercial flights were suspended for years and resumed only sporadically from May 2022 under UN-brokered arrangements, mainly limited Yemenia routes to destinations such as Amman, Cairo and Jeddah. The field was struck by the Israeli Air Force on 26 Dec 2024 (during a Houthi leadership speech) and again on 6 May 2025, when a major strike destroyed terminal and apron infrastructure along with three Yemenia Airbus A320s on the ground - the airport director cited around US$500 million in losses. A brief resumption of flights around 11 May 2025 (including Hajj pilgrim departures to Jeddah) was followed by a further Israeli strike on 28 May 2025 that destroyed the last Yemenia aircraft still operating out of Sana'a, effectively grounding the carrier's Sana'a service. On 13 Jul 2026 the airport was struck again, this time by Yemen's own Presidential Leadership Council together with Saudi Arabia, reportedly to prevent an Iranian aircraft from landing there; the Houthis retaliated with missiles and drones against Saudi Arabia's Abha International Airport, underscoring that the field remains an active flashpoint well into 2026. Runway and terminal repairs have periodically allowed nominal reopenings of the field, but Yemenia has not resumed scheduled service and Sana'a remains verified non-operating for commercial traffic as of September 2026, under continued Houthi control. The single runway (18/36, 3,252 m asphalt) has no confirmed ILS in available sources - treat approaches as non-precision/visual only pending direct CAMA confirmation. The 50,000 (2025) passenger figure reflects this near-total operational collapse and should be read as a rough estimate of residual/irregular traffic (aid, UN and limited charter movements) rather than a comparable scheduled-service total; verify current NOTAM and CAMA status before any flight planning.