Emirates and Etihad Airways were resuming limited flight schedules to key global cities from their United Arab Emirates hubs on Friday (6 March), though the ongoing threat of missile fire piled pressure on airlines.
With most airspace in the Middle East still closed over missile and drone concerns since the start of the U.S.-Israel war against Iran last weekend, authorities have been arranging charter flights and securing seats on limited commercial services to evacuate tens of thousands of people.
A government-chartered Air France flight to bring French nationals back from the United Arab Emirates was forced to turn back on Thursday due to missile fire in the area, French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot said.
"This situation reflects the instability in the region and the complexity of repatriation operations," he said.
Etihad said on Friday it would resume a limited flight schedule through 19 March. The flights will operate to and from Abu Dhabi and 25 destinations including London, Paris, Frankfurt, Delhi, New York and Toronto.
As of Thursday, traffic at Dubai airport, normally the world's busiest, had almost doubled from Wednesday, but remained only about 25% of normal levels, flight-tracking website Flightradar24 said.
Dubai-based Emirates, one of the UAE's two flag carriers, said late on Thursday it was operating a reduced flight schedule to 82 destinations including London, Sydney, Singapore and New York until further notice.
The limited operations at Middle Eastern hubs have hit travellers on routes from Europe to the Asia-Pacific region particularly hard.
Combined, Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways normally fly about one-third of passengers from Europe to Asia and more than half of all passengers from Europe to Australia, New Zealand and nearby Pacific Islands, according to Cirium data.
Qatar's Doha hub remains shut, though it has been arranging a limited number of relief flights from Oman and Saudi Arabia.
Data from Cirium showed that from 28 February, when the conflict started to 5 March, there were more than 44,000 flights scheduled in and out of the Middle East, with more than 25,000 flights cancelled so far.
Higher oil prices have sent jet fuel costs soaring, with Singapore jet fuel reaching a record high of $225 a barrel this week, which traders attributed to concerns about supply shortages from Middle Eastern refiners.
The price eased slightly on Thursday to about $195 a barrel after some profit-taking but remained nearly double that of last week.
Shares of Qantas Airways fell more than 3% on Friday, Air New Zealand was down nearly 7%, Hong Kong's flagship carrier Cathay Pacific dropped more than 2%, while Singapore Airlines was down more than 1%.
Travellers describe chaos in scramble to leave
Passengers have been forking out huge sums of money to get out of the Middle East, with some who managed to travel back by commercial flight on Thursday from Oman saying it had been "absolute chaos" to find their way back home from Dubai.
"We paid £1,500 ($2,005.05) to get across to Muscat (Oman) to get on the plane," said Ed Short after he arrived at London's Heathrow Airport on a British Airways flight.
With the conflict showing little sign of easing, wider aviation and air-cargo disruption looked set to linger.
Saudi budget carrier Flynas will run a limited number of flights between Saudi Arabia and Dubai starting on Friday.
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Start your day informed with the AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top stories for the 7 June, covering the latest developments you need to know.
China’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan, Yue Xiaoyong, has met Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq, in Islamabad to discuss the China-facilitated Urumqi Process and regional security concerns.
The United States has warned Oman against supporting any effort to impose tolls in the Strait of Hormuz, saying Washington would penalise any parties involved in facilitating such a system.
Details of a reported draft memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran offer the clearest picture yet of how both sides plan to end months of conflict and move towards a longer-term settlement.
The U.S. and Iran say they have reached a deal to end their conflict, with an immediate ceasefire and reopening of the Strait of Hormuz after the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade. Talks will continue over the next 60 days to finalise the agreement
A senior U.S. official said on Monday that the memorandum of understanding linked to the U.S.-Iran agreement had been signed by President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told U.S. President Donald Trump that Israel does not consider itself bound by a Lebanon-related provision in an emerging agreement with Iran, according to Israeli officials.
Switzerland on Sunday rejected a referendum proposal to cap its population at 10 million, a projection showed, as voters prioritised economic stability and the country's ties with the European Union over immigration concerns.
Tourism operators in eastern Latvia say repeated incursions by stray military drones linked to the war in Ukraine are driving visitors away from one of the country's most popular summer destinations, threatening hundreds of small businesses that rely on seasonal trade.
TUI has reported sustained demand for holidays despite the Iran war, as the world’s biggest travel company posted lower-than-expected quarterly losses and said bookings for the second half of the year remained strong.
Travellers worried about costs and flights by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East are changing their summer holiday plans, with lastminute bookings, safer destinations such as Spain, and rail travel all growing in popularity.
A Turkish Airlines plane caught fire in its landing gear tyres after landing at Tribhuvan International Airport on Monday (11 May) morning, temporarily disrupting airport operations, officials said.
ITA Airways is preparing to raise ticket prices by between 5% and 10% this year as soaring fuel costs linked to the conflict involving Iran, Israel and the U.S. continue to pressure airlines worldwide.
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