Flight operations to and from the Middle East have ground to a halt following the closure of airspace by several Gulf states due to the ongoing conflict between the US and Iran.
More than 19,000 flights worldwide have been delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. Data from Flightradar24 showed that more than 3,400 flights were canceled at seven airports in the Middle East on Sunday.
Airports in the Middle East are closed
Dubai International Airport, Doha Hamad International Airport, Abu Dhabi Zayed International Airport, Sharjah International Airport, Kuwait International Airport, Bahrain International Airport and Dubai World Central – Al Maktoum International, which are also key aviation hubs, have been affected by the conflict, forcing them to close or suspend all operations.
United Arab Emirates
All flight operations at Dubai International Airport (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC) are suspended “until further notice”. Operations at Abu Dhabi (AUH) have also ground to a halt.
Catarrh
Doha’s Hamad International Airport (DOH) is temporarily closed, with Qatar Airways grounding its fleet until at least Monday morning 2 March.
Kuwait
The airspace is closed until further notice. Reports indicate that Kuwait International Airport (KWI) suffered minor damage in the drone attack.
Bahrain
The airspace is functionally closed following missile threats in the region.
Affected carriers
Emirates: It has suspended all operations to and from Dubai until at least 15:00 local time on Monday, March 2.
Etihad Airways: Suspended all flights to Abu Dhabi until 02:00 local time on Monday 2 March.
flydubai: Temporarily suspended all flights scheduled until Monday, March 2, 2026 at 3:00 p.m.
Qatar Airways: Operations remain temporarily suspended pending a safety announcement from the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority.
Flights from/to India
The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) said 444 flights between India and the Middle East were canceled on Sunday due to the escalation of tensions between Iran and Israel.
Due to restrictions on airspace over Iran and parts of the Middle East, 410 flights were canceled on Saturday.
According to PTI, Delhi International Airport witnessed 100 flight cancellations while Mumbai airport saw 125 flight cancellations in view of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
