Flight in the Gulf is gradually winking back into action. With flight issues persisting in the regional airspace, UAE airlines and airports have announced community confirmations of a handful of restarts on the night of March 2, under stringent conditions and numerous caveats for travellers. The message to the board is plain and straightforward: confirm first, and travel later.
Flights Resume Slowly In The GCC Region Amid Ongoing Regional Tension
The Gulf News, The Hindu, and Saudi Gazette note that airlines are requesting their passengers to trust official information and not to travel to airports unless their flights are confirmed.
Emirates, Etihad & flydubai: What’s Flying And What’s Not
Emirates has started several flights on the evening of March 2, with priority of passengers making previous bookings. Direct contact and calls through which rebooked travellers are being contacted have been made, and the airline has made it clear to customers not to approach the airport unless notified. Other flights are also suspended at present.
Etihad Airways reported that some small operations have come back; however, all frequent commercial business to and out of Abu Dhabi has been cancelled. But the cargo, repositioning and repatriation flights can be carried out with government approvals.
flydubai will also operate a few services beginning on 2 evenings in March. Before going out, passengers are required to update their contact information through Manage Your Booking and monitor the flight status.
Airport Status Across The UAE
Dubai Airports has announced a partial restart at Dubai International (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC) starting March 2 evening only with a few approved flights.
Abu Dhabi Airports indicates that flights at Abu Dhabi International (AUH) have, in part, gone back as per the arrangements with the authorities. The Sharjah International Airport has also resumed some operations, but on a very strict timetable. In the meantime, the Ras Al Khaimah International Airport is operationally closed.
Air Arabia’s Full Suspension Continues
All UAE flights were closed by Air Arabia until 3 pm on March 3, whereas services to Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq continue to be suspended until March 4. The airline claims that safety comes first.
Oman Air: Quick Passenger Update
Oman Air has suspended its flights to and from Amman, Dubai, Bahrain, Doha, Dammam, Kuwait, Copenhagen and Baghdad on Tuesday, March 3, on account of airspace closures. Other services are on but could be delayed. Oman Air allows passengers to make and manage bookings on the airline’s site or on the mobile application and informs that it is in close alignment with the authorities, giving regular updates as the situation unfolds and apologising to passengers because of the inconvenience.
Also Read: India-UAE Flights: Air India To SpiceJet, Several Flights Affected On The Route Amid Tensions
India-Gulf Routes: Continuous Heavy Disruptions
On March 3, Air India Express will restart its operations between Muscat and Indian cities. Nonetheless, flights to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar are on hold till late March 3.
On March 2, Indian carriers cancelled 357 flights between the Gulf after 350 flights were cancelled on March 1. Only limited services are being performed by foreign airlines.
Saudia has cancelled several cities such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Kuwait up to March 4.
Cover Image Courtesy: CanvaPro/ Aflo Images from アフロ（Aflo）