The outbreak of war between the US & Israel and Iran has plunged the Middle East into fresh conflict and the global aviation industry into fresh chaos.
Airspace covering nine countries across the Middle East region is currently closed and tens of thousands of passengers are suddenly directly affected – either through being cut off within the region or unable to fly having booked tickets to the region. Consumers in the latter category are being advised not to cancel their tickets as that may compromise their ability to claim refunds.
The region – hugely popular for direct holidays to places like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Qatar; and for connectivity to Asia and Australia/New Zealand – could take weeks to return to normal, experts have warned.
This is the current update from affected airlines:
Emirates has suspended all operations to and from Dubai – initially until 3pm local time today. It said passengers booked to travel on or before March 5 have two option: either to rebook on an alternative flight or request a refund.
Qatar Airways said its flight operations remain temporarily suspended due to the closure of Qatari airspace. Qatar Airways will resume operations once the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority announces the safe reopening of Qatari airspace. A further update will be provided on 03 March by 09:00 Doha time. Passengers are advised to monitor the latest flight information via qatarairways.com or the Qatar Airways mobile app.
Regional airspace closures continue to impact Etihad Airways‘ operations, and all flights to and from Abu Dhabi are suspended until 14:00 UAE time on Monday 2 March. The flight status page on etihad.com may temporarily display original scheduled timings. Updated departure and arrival times will be reflected as soon as they are confirmed. Etihad continues to work in close coordination with the relevant authorities and will resume normal operations as soon as conditions permit.
British Airways has said it is closely monitoring the situation, having cancelled a number of flights to the Middle East. It said it has a flexible booking policy in place for flights to Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Tel Aviv. Customers due to travel to these destinations should check with ba.com for updates.
KLM said: “Recent developments in the Middle East are affecting our flights. Due to the security situation, we have cancelled all flights to and from Tel Aviv, Dubai, Riyadh, and Dammam through March 5, 2026. We are continuously monitoring the situation and will provide updates as soon as information about future flights becomes available.”
