Limited departures resume from UAE as regional airspace crisis deepens

A small number of flights have begun departing the United Arab Emirates, but widespread disruption continues across the Middle East as the joint Israeli and U.S. military campaign against Iran reverberates through global aviation networks.

According to flight-tracking service Flightradar24, more than 4,000 flights per day have been cancelled across the region, affecting hundreds of thousands of passengers. Ian Petchenik, the company’s director of communications, warned that the disruption “will only increase the longer the crisis continues,” adding that the consequences for the aviation industry could be enormous.

Data from aviation analytics firm Cirium highlights the scale of the shutdown. On Monday morning, 79% of global flights to Qatar and 71% to the UAE were cancelled. The figures were even higher for Israel (81%) and Bahrain (92%), underscoring the near-total paralysis of key Gulf and Levant air corridors.

UAE Flights Resume on Limited Basis

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways temporarily suspended services until 14:00 local time (10:00 GMT), after which selected departures resumed. These included flight EY67 to London Heathrow Airport, alongside services to Moscow, Paris, Cairo, Delhi and Karachi.

The airline said that “some repositioning, cargo and repatriation flights may operate in coordination with UAE authorities and subject to strict operational and safety approvals,” but confirmed that regular scheduled services remain cancelled.

Meanwhile, Dubai Airports announced a “limited resumption of operations” at Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International Airport, with only a small number of outbound flights permitted. Dubai-based Emirates said it would prioritise passengers with existing bookings on these services and contact affected customers directly.

No flights are currently operating from Doha, as Qatari airspace remains closed. Earlier, Qatar Airways confirmed that all operations remain suspended pending clearance from the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority.

Global Ripple Effects

The disruption extends well beyond the Gulf. From the United Kingdom, all flights to Israel and Bahrain have been cancelled, alongside roughly three-quarters of scheduled departures to the UAE and 69% of flights to Qatar.

Travellers remain stranded across the region. Ian Scott, from Somerset, told the BBC he was returning from Melbourne to Venice when his flight out of Doha was forced to turn back mid-air. After 15 hours in the airport, he was evacuated to a hotel and later sheltered underground due to nearby explosions. He remains in Doha awaiting an opportunity to depart.

Paul Charles of travel consultancy the PC Agency said the knock-on effects are global. Aircraft are stranded outside the Middle East, including Qatar Airways planes grounded at São Paulo. Meanwhile, flights via alternative routes are operating at full capacity as displaced passengers scramble for seats through unaffected hubs.

Industry Under Strain

With major Gulf hubs largely offline and overflight routes restricted, airlines are confronting escalating operational costs, crew dislocation and severe scheduling instability. Analysts warn that even once airspace reopens, the recovery phase will be complex, as aircraft and crews must be repositioned and passenger backlogs cleared.

For now, only a trickle of flights is departing the UAE. Across much of the Middle East, commercial aviation remains effectively grounded — and the longer the crisis persists, the more profound the global consequences are likely to become.