On Thursday, April 14, I was among hundreds of passengers at Prince Muhammad International Airport in Madinah, waiting to board flight No. SV1444 to Riyadh that was scheduled to take off at 5:25 p.m.

Ten minutes before the flight, it was announced that all flights were delayed and that a revised timetable would be announced at 7:30 p.m.

When 7:30 came, we were told that the new flight times would be announced at 9:30 p.m.

When 9:30 came, we were asked to wait until 1:15 a.m. the next day to find out when we would take off.

At around 11 p.m., we were told that all scheduled flights were canceled and we were asked to obtain new boarding passes.

They told us that there were two flights to Riyadh, one at two in the morning and the second at 8:10 a.m.

Exactly at 12:50 a.m., we were told that the airport would be closed until 8:15 a.m. the next day. We were given the telephone number of customer relations for any inquiries.

We found out that the reason behind the delays and cancellations of flights was the sandstorm that hit the area.

Of course, Saudia has every right to look after the safety of its planes and passengers. We appreciated this, but were angered at being told at the last minute, which indicated disrespect for the passengers.

The sandstorm is not a secret to be concealed from passengers, who could even appreciate the decision to close the airport to ensure their safety. It was the hiding of information that exasperated us.

The issue then is not the sandstorm, which no one has a hand in, but the disrespect for passengers through repeated announcements about delays and cancellations.

We came to the airport again at 9 a.m. on Friday expecting to be told about our new flight times, but instead we were told there were no places available.

After 11 a.m. we were given our new flight timings. Mine was at 6:50 p.m. We boarded the plane at 5:30 but take off was at 7:30 p.m. We arrived in Riyadh at 8:30 p.m. on Friday, more than 24 hours later.

I do not see the logic behind hiding facts from people. We could have been taken to hotels and brought back the next day. Using the sandstorm as the excuse for the flight delays was not acceptable since it could have been foreseen monitoring weather forecasts.

Crises happen everywhere, but it is the crisis management that matters. When will justice be done on behalf of the passengers? This is a question everybody wants an answer.

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