With airspaces in the region reopening, airlines based in the UAE are resuming scheduled operations. Several flights to and from the UAE had to be cancelled, while others were rerouted as Iran launched a missile and drone attack against Israel.
Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Israel reopened their airspaces after temporarily closing them following the attack Sunday.
As flight operations return to normal, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways said there may still be a risk of some “knock-on disruption” on Monday, March 15. In a statement to Khaleej Times, the airline said it plans to operate scheduled passenger and cargo services between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv, Amman and Beirut on Monday. It had to cancel services to these destinations on Sunday and re-route a number of its European and North American flights to overfly Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
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The airline urged customers to check the status of their flight on its website before travelling. “Etihad Airways flights only operate through approved airspace and safety is always our highest priority. Etihad would never operate a flight unless it was safe to do so, and the airline is continuously monitoring security and airspace updates,” a spokesperson for the airline said.
Dubai-based Emirates had to cancel some flights from the late evening of April 13 until the morning of April 14. “With the re-opening of these airspaces, we are resuming our scheduled operations to/from Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq from the afternoon of April 14. We are closely monitoring the situation in coordination with the relevant authorities. Safety is always our top priority,” a spokesperson for the airline said in a statement to Khaleej Times.
In an update posted on its website, the carrier said its contact centres are experiencing a large volume of interactions and customers may experience “long wait times”.
Flydubai had to cancel some flights to Iran, Iraq, Israel and Jordan on Sunday as airspaces closed temporarily. Two of its flights that took off for Amman and Tel Aviv had to return to Dubai as airspaces shut temporarily. As these reopen, the airline will make amendments to its “schedule accordingly”.