Airlines suspended flights across the Middle East on Saturday, including to and from the world’s busiest travel hub Dubai, after the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran, plunging the region into a renewed military confrontation.
Flight maps showed airspace over Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel and Bahrain virtually empty as Israel said it struck Iran and the US military initiated a series of strikes against targets in the country. Iran retaliated with a salvo of missiles.
Witnesses told Reuters about explosions across the Gulf, including in Qatar’s Doha, which hosts the biggest US military base in the Middle East, as well as Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates – key global transport hubs.
The closure of Gulf megahubs chokes the busiest east-west transit point, leaving few parts of the planet untouched by disruption.
“You have crews, planes and passengers stranded all over the world. It’s a massive logistical nightmare,” a Gulf airline source said.
Dubai Airports said all flights at Dubai International, which handled nearly 100 million passengers last year, as well as the smaller Al Maktoum International Airport, were suspended until further notice, urging passengers not to travel.
“Due to multiple regional airspace closures, Emirates has temporarily suspended operations to and from Dubai,” the Dubai-based carrier said, while its sister airline flydubai, said it had temporarily suspended operations.
Etihad Airways said all flights scheduled to depart Abu Dhabi were suspended until 1000 GMT on Sunday, and flights expected to arrive at the Gulf hub before that time would be cancelled.
The escalation dimmed hopes for a diplomatic solution to Tehran’s nuclear dispute with the West and reignited conflict after weeks of US military buildup in the region.
It marks the latest upheaval for air travel in the usually busy region amid escalating tensions.
Airports in the Middle East are some of the busiest in the world, covering an area stretching from Iran and Iraq to the Mediterranean and serving as a connecting hub for flights between Europe and Asia.
“Passengers and airlines can expect airspace to be shut for quite some time in the region,” said Eric Schouten, head of aviation security advisory Dyami. “The impact on regional aviation is immediate and highly fluid.”
Airlines cancelled on Saturday about half of their flights to Qatar and Israel and about 28 percent of their flights to Kuwait, after the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran, according to preliminary Cirium data.
In total, about 24 percent of flights to the Middle East were cancelled, the data showed.
At Doha’s Hamad International Airport, gates appeared almost empty, while stranded passengers queued to make hotel arrangements.
There was uncertainty about when flight schedules would resume, a Reuters witness reported.
The region has taken on a more important role since the start of the war between Russia and Ukraine, which has forced airlines to avoid airspace over both countries.
Conflict zones are an increasing operational burden on airlines as aerial attacks raise worries about accidental or deliberate shoot-downs of commercial air traffic.
Longer flight times also require more fuel, adding to their costs.
Israel, Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan closed their airspace following the attacks and a map of the region on Flightradar24 showed planes avoiding these areas.
