Global aviation under strain as Middle East flight cancellations top 23,000

2026-03-05 - 09:23

Emirates extended its suspension of flights to Dubai through Saturday, marking a full week since the US and Israel launched their joint attack. (AFP pic) DUBAI: The financial and logistical troubles the Iran war is causing for the global aviation industry are compounding by the day, with the number of cancelled flights to Middle East hubs surpassing 23,000 since fighting began. Emirates, the world’s largest international airline, extended its suspension of flights to Dubai through the end of Saturday, a full week since the US and Israel launched their joint attack. Qatar Airways extended its service halts into Friday. Of the 36,000 scheduled flights to or from the Middle East since Feb 28, more than half have been cancelled, analytics firm Cirium Ltd said Wednesday. That equates to about 4.4 million seats. Thousands of passengers have been stranded in the Gulf region, forcing many to take circuitous, expensive routes to reach functioning airports in Saudi Arabia and Oman. “The UAE is establishing safe air corridors to allow for as many as 48 flights an hour,” the economy ministry said. Here is a list of airlines that have announced adjustments to their regional flight schedules: Air India Airline is laying on additional flights. Between March 5-11, the airline is operating three additional flights between Delhi and Toronto. Between March 7-10, three extra flights between Delhi and Frankfurt, one extra Delhi-Paris service. Running Delhi and Mumbai flights via Jeddah on March 5. Air India said it’s examining running additional flights beyond March 11 in response to high demand and the loss of flights run by Middle East carriers. Air France-KLM Air France suspended flights to and from Dubai and Riyadh through March 6 and to and from Tel Aviv and Beirut through March 8, according to its website Wednesday. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines suspended the remainder of its winter season flights to and from Tel Aviv, starting Sunday. It also halted flights to and from Dammam and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and Dubai until March 6, according to a notice published on its website. British Airways Suspended service to Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Tel Aviv. The airline added daily flights between London and Muscat, Oman, on Friday and Saturday after previously offering service on Thursday. All are fully booked. Cathay Pacific Cancelled services to and from Dubai and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – where the airspace remains open – until March 14. China Southern Flights between Dubai and Guangzhou, Wuhan, Shenzhen and Urumqi are cancelled until March 5, the airline said on its WeChat account. Services between Riyadh and Shenzhen, Guangzhou are paused, as are flights between Doha and Beijing, Guangzhou. Subramania Bhatt CEO of China Trading Desk, a marketing technology company, said Chinese flyers have cancelled more than 77,000 trips to UAE in recent days, translating to a loss of at least US$170 million in travel spending. Delta Air Lines Flights between New York and Tel Aviv are suspended through at least March 22, according to its website. Emirates The world’s largest international airline extended the suspension of flights to and from Dubai through March 7. Emirates has scrapped more than 2,000 flights since Saturday, among the most severe disruptions ever for a carrier that prides itself on round-the-clock operations and resilience. While the airline has started some limited operations to evacuate people from Dubai, regular commercial flights are cancelled. Etihad Extended its suspension of Abu Dhabi flights to March 6. A limited number of repositioning, cargo and repatriation flights are operating. Finnair Services between Helsinki-Doha on pause until at least March 6, though Qatari airspace remains completely closed to traffic. Operations to and from Dubai are cancelled through March 28. IndiGo Budget carrier commenced flights to Athens, Muscat and Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah and Madinah. It’s also running select repatriation flights to the UAE, it said in a social media post Wednesday. Korean Air Flights to Dubai suspended to March 7. Lufthansa Group All of its airlines suspended flights to Tel Aviv; Beirut; Amman, Jordan; Erbil, Iraq; and Tehran until March 8. The group also won’t use the airspace over Israel; Lebanon; Jordan; Iraq; Qatar; Kuwait; Bahrain; Dammam, Saudi Arabia; and Iran until March 8. Flights to and from Dubai and Abu Dhabi are suspended until March 6 and the airspace over the UAE won’t be used during that same period. Lufthansa will operate an evacuation flight via Oman in the night of March 4 to March 5 on behalf of the German government, using an Airbus A340-300. Malaysia Airlines Flights from Kuala Lumpur to Jeddah and Madinah, Saudi Arabia, resumed starting Wednesday. Services to Doha remain suspended. Oman Air Flights to and from Amman, Dubai, Bahrain, Doha, Dammam, Kuwait, Copenhagen, Baghdad and Khasab are cancelled through March 6, according to a post on its X.com account. It also advised travelers coming to Muscat to arrive at the border at least 12 hours before their flight because of congestion. Qantas Qantas is running a charter flight between Sydney and London Heathrow via Singapore on March 7. Qatar Airways Operations from its home base of Doha remain halted until further notice and the airline will provide an update Friday morning. Qatar Airways will run a limited number of relief flights from March 5 for stranded passengers, from Muscat in Oman to London, Berlin, Copenhagen, Madrid, Rome and Amsterdam, and Riyadh to Frankfurt. Russia President Vladimir Putin instructed government ministries and agencies to organise evacuation flights from the Middle East. Aeroflot plans two flights to Russia from the UAE on Wednesday for passengers whose flights were cancelled Feb 28, the Russian company said in a statement on Telegram. Transport ministry said more than 7,000 people are set to be transported Wednesday by domestic and foreign airlines. Singapore Airlines Flights to Dubai are cancelled until March 7. SpiceJet Indian budget carrier laying on around 20 special flights from UAE to India. 19 flights between March 5-7 from Fujairah to Mumbai and Delhi. One flight on March 5 from Dubai to Mumbai. Virgin Atlantic The airline is resuming flights to Dubai and Riyadh from London after suspending them through March 3.