Partial departures return while most schedules stay grounded
Air travel through the United Arab Emirates began a limited restart on Monday, but the wider Gulf network remained heavily disrupted, leaving large numbers of passengers waiting for new itineraries. Several international carriers said they would operate only a small selection of services after flight activity was halted on Saturday as regional airspace closures spread during the conflict between the US-Israel and Iran.
Abu Dhabi based Etihad Airways, Dubai based Emirates, and budget carrier Flydubai each confirmed a narrow set of departures or arrivals. Dubai’s government urged passengers to go to airports only if they were contacted directly, describing the restart as restricted and controlled. Flight disruption data showed that more than 80% of flights scheduled to and from Dubai and more than half of services to and from Abu Dhabi were still cancelled on Monday.
Flight tracking updates also pointed to a broader regional impact. Flightradar24 reported more than 2,000 cancellations linked to seven major airports across the Gulf: Dubai International, Hamad International in Doha, Zayed International in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah International, Kuwait International, Bahrain International, and Dubai World Central Al Maktoum International.
Etihad and Emirates focus on evacuations and tightly managed bookings
Etihad’s initial movements were aimed at clearing backlogs at Abu Dhabi’s main airport. Flightradar24 data indicated at least 15 Etihad flights departed on Monday, with routes including Islamabad, Paris, Amsterdam, Mumbai, Cairo and London Heathrow. The airline stressed that regular commercial operations remained constrained and that any additional flying could involve repositioning, cargo or repatriation services, subject to approvals from UAE authorities.
Etihad also set a near term timetable for its hub, saying scheduled commercial flights to and from Abu Dhabi would remain suspended until 2 pm local time on Wednesday 4 March. That deadline signaled that the airline expects conditions to remain uncertain even as limited flights are permitted to operate.
Emirates began operating a small number of flights on Monday evening and said it would prioritize customers with earlier bookings. The carrier said affected travelers would be contacted directly if they were rebooked onto the limited services. Dubai Airports confirmed that operations restarted with only a small number of flights allowed from Dubai International and Dubai World Central Al Maktoum International.
Two monitored departures illustrated the cautious pace: Emirates flight UAE500 to Mumbai left Dubai at 6:15 pm CET, followed by Emirates flight UAE542 to Chennai. Flight tracking interest spiked when UAE500 departed, with more than 138,000 people following it. Flightradar24 said it was Emirates’ first departure from Dubai since 12:19 local time on 28 February.
Flydubai movements highlight congestion as travelers remain stranded
While some aircraft resumed movement, air traffic management constraints remained visible. As Emirates flights departed, two Flydubai flights approaching Dubai entered holding patterns over the Gulf, circling before landing. At the same time, flights approached Abu Dhabi to land after earlier Etihad departures, showing that inbound flows were still carefully sequenced.
Flydubai said it would operate four outbound flights and accept five inbound aircraft on Monday. The carrier said it was coordinating with authorities and stakeholders to support a gradual return to service, while warning that schedules could change quickly as conditions evolve.
The reduced flying has created a large and dispersed backlog. With air travel severely limited across the Middle East, the conflict that began on Saturday left hundreds of thousands of travelers in limbo across multiple countries. Tourists, business travelers and religious pilgrims were reported stranded in hotels, airports and even on cruise ships, with multi leg passengers particularly exposed when hub connections failed.
The disruption also reflects the strategic role of regional hubs. Dubai International, Zayed International in Abu Dhabi, and Hamad International in Doha are key gateways linking Europe, Africa and Asia. All three were directly hit by Iranian strikes over the weekend, adding operational uncertainty to the airspace closures and complicating airline recovery plans.
Airline suspensions spread across routes and dates into March
Outside the UAE, Qatar’s main airport remained shut to aircraft movements because of the temporary closure of Qatari airspace. Qatar Airways said it would restart operations only after the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority announces that the airspace has reopened safely, with another update due Tuesday by 9 am local time.
Airline cancellations extended beyond the immediate conflict zone. Oman Air said flights to and from Amman, Dubai, Bahrain, Doha, Dammam, Kuwait, Copenhagen and Baghdad were cancelled for Tuesday 3 March, while other services could face delays. Saudia cancelled flights to and from Amman, Kuwait, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Bahrain, Moscow and Peshawar until 11:59 pm GMT on 2 March.
Several European and low cost carriers laid out longer suspensions. Wizz Air suspended flights to and from Israel, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Amman and Saudi Arabia through 7 March. Turkish Airlines cancelled services across a wide list including Bahrain, parts of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Syria, the UAE and others. Air France cancelled flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut, Dubai and Riyadh until 5 March.
KLM said it was avoiding the airspace of Iran, Iraq and Israel and several Gulf countries, with routes cancelled or altered. It suspended Tel Aviv flights for the remainder of its winter season operations and paused Dubai, Dammam and Riyadh flying until 5 March. British Airways paused Tel Aviv and Bahrain routes until 4 March and offered flexible changes for customers due to travel to or from Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai or Tel Aviv through 15 March, with options to rebook to travel on or before 29 March or seek refunds under certain dates.
Lufthansa Group airlines suspended flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Amman, Erbil, Dammam and Tehran until 8 March and also halted flights to and from Dubai until 4 March. Finnair suspended daily flights to Dubai and Doha until 6 March, and Norwegian stopped Dubai flights through 4 March with a review planned afterward. In North America, Delta cancelled New York to Tel Aviv flights until 8 March, while American Airlines said its Doha to Philadelphia service was temporarily suspended. Air Canada said flights to and from Dubai and Tel Aviv were suspended, with a restart planned for 23 March. Air India extended the suspension of all flights to and from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Qatar until 11:59 pm local time on 2 March 2026. Garuda Indonesia temporarily suspended Doha flights until further notice.