Flights to Middle East and India cancelled as airspace closes after US-Israel strikes on Iran

LONDON Feb 28: International air travel has been thrown into turmoil after flights between Western Europe and the Middle East were cancelled or rerouted following US and Israeli strikes on Iran. Many services to India rely on Middle East stopovers, leading to widespread disruption. Passengers are advised to check flight status and updates directly with their airline before travelling to the airport.

Check flight status:

• Emirates – https://www.emirates.com/flightstatus

• Etihad – https://www.etihad.com/en-in/manage/check-flight-status

• Qatar Airways – https://www.qatarairways.com/en/travel-alerts.html

• Air India – https://www.airindia.com/in/en/travel-updates.html

• IndiGo – https://www.goindigo.in/travel-advisory.html

• Kuwait Airways – https://www.kuwaitairways.com/en/travel-alerts

• Gulf Air – https://www.gulfair.com/
• Oman Air – https://www.omanair.com/en/flight-status
• Saudi Airways –https://www.saudia.com/en-SA/flightstatus
• Virgin Atlantic – https://www.virginatlantic.com/flight-status/search
• British Airways – https://www.britishairways.com/travel/flightstatus/public/en_gb/search
• Turkish Airways – https://www.turkishairlines.com/en-int/flights/flight-status/

The “major combat operation,” confirmed by Donald Trump on Saturday, has led to the closure of Iranian and Iraqi airspace amid escalating hostilities. With missiles launched from Israel and retaliatory strikes from Iran, aircraft that would normally cross the region are being forced to divert.

Data from Flightradar24 shows that overnight flights from the Gulf initially crossed northeast Iraq, but from around 6am GMT aircraft began rerouting west over Saudi Arabia.

Dubai International Airport—the world’s busiest global hub—has suspended flights. On a typical day, around 250,000 passengers pass through the airport. Its main carrier, Emirates, said operations to and from Dubai have been temporarily suspended due to multiple regional airspace closures, adding that affected customers are being offered rebooking, refunds or alternative arrangements.

Other airlines have also been hit. British Airways passenger Mike Boreham described being boarded on flight BA108 from Dubai to Heathrow when the captain announced that airspace had closed. Several inbound flights to Dubai turned back to their departure airports, including services operated by Emirates, Turkish Airlines and LOT.

Qatar Airways has suspended all flights to and from Doha, with services from Birmingham, Edinburgh, Manchester, Dublin and Heathrow returning to their origins. British Airways has cancelled flights from London Heathrow to Bahrain and Tel Aviv until 3 March, and grounded Saturday’s service to Amman, citing safety concerns.

Virgin Atlantic cancelled its London Heathrow–Dubai flight on Saturday as a precaution and confirmed it is temporarily avoiding Iraqi airspace, resulting in rerouted services. Air Canada, Eurowings, Finnair and Swiss have also cancelled flights to and from Dubai.

While Emirates continues to operate much of its network, it has grounded services to Baghdad, Beirut and Amman. FlyDubai has cancelled flights to Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Tel Aviv and Damascus. Wizz Air has suspended all flights to and from Israel, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Amman until 7 March.

Numerous carriers—including Delta, United, Air France, KLM, Aegean and FlyDubai—have halted operations to and from Tel Aviv. Flights that had continued to cross Iran earlier on Saturday have now ceased, with longer routings and air traffic congestion expected until airspace reopens.

The UK Foreign Office has updated its travel advice, warning against all travel to Israel and Palestine following the escalation. British nationals in the region are urged to follow local authority guidance, avoid military sites and ensure their travel documents are up to date.