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Factbox-Middle East flights halted after US-Israel strike on Iran

Published by Global Banking & Finance Review

Posted on March 1, 2026

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· Last updated: April 24, 2026

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Factbox-Middle East flights halted after US-Israel strike on Iran
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Feb 28 (Reuters) - Airlines cancelled flights across the Middle East on Saturday after the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran, plunging the region into a new conflict. Airspace over

Factbox-Airlines cancel flights amid Middle East conflict

Overview of Flight Cancellations and Service Changes

April 24 (Reuters) - Global air travel remains severely disrupted, with many people unable to fly as planned after the Iran war forced the closure of major Middle Eastern hubs, including Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi.

Below is the latest on flights, in alphabetical order:

AEGEAN AIRLINES

Flight Resumptions

Greece's largest carrier will resume flights to Tel Aviv from Athens on April 28, from Heraklion on April 30 and from Rhodes and Larnaca on May 21.

Flight Cancellations

Flights from Thessaloniki to Tel Aviv are cancelled until June 26.

It will resume flights to Riyadh and Amman on May 21. Flights to Beirut are cancelled until June 26, to Dubai until June 29, and to Erbil and Baghdad until July 2.

AIRBALTIC

Flight Cancellations

Latvia's airBaltic says flights to Tel Aviv have been cancelled until May 31. Flights to Dubai are cancelled until October 24.

AIR CANADA

Flight Cancellations

The Canadian carrier has cancelled flights to Tel Aviv and Dubai until September 7.

AIR EUROPA

Flight Cancellations

The Spanish airline has cancelled flights to Tel Aviv until May 31.

AIR FRANCE-KLM

Air France

Air France has suspended its Tel Aviv, Beirut, Dubai and Riyadh flights until May 3.

KLM

KLM has suspended flights to Riyadh, Dammam and Dubai until June 14.

CATHAY PACIFIC

Flight Suspensions

The Hong Kong airline has suspended flights to Dubai and Riyadh until June 30 and cargo freighter services to Dubai and Riyadh until May 31.

Additional Services

To cater for a surge in demand to Europe, it will operate extra passenger flights to London, Paris and Zurich in April. It plans to operate all scheduled flights beyond June.

DELTA

Flight Cancellations and Delays

The U.S. carrier has cancelled its New York-Tel Aviv flights and delayed the restart of its Atlanta-Tel Aviv route until September 5. It said the launch of its Boston-Tel Aviv route, planned for late October, has been delayed until further notice.

EL AL ISRAEL AIRLINES

Operational Updates

The Israeli carrier said it is continuing to gradually expand operations, and from April 27 will operate flights to about 40 active gateways. All flights to Dubai are cancelled until May 31.

EMIRATES

Reduced Schedule

The UAE airline has said it is operating a reduced flight schedule, flying to more than 100 destinations.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS

Operational Schedule

The UAE carrier said it is operating a commercial flight schedule between Abu Dhabi and around 80 destinations.

FINNAIR

Flight Cancellations

The Finnish carrier has cancelled its Doha flights until July 2, while continuing to avoid the airspace of Iraq, Iran, Syria and Israel. The airline only restarts its Dubai flights in October.

IAG

British Airways

IAG-owned British Airways is reducing flights to the Middle East when services resume, permanently dropping Jeddah as a destination, while adding capacity to India and Africa.

It plans to reduce services to Dubai, Doha and Tel Aviv to one daily flight from July  1, and to cut Riyadh services from two daily flights to one from mid‑May. Changes apply through the summer season that ends on October 24, with one Dubai service restarting on October 16.

Iberia Express

IAG's Spanish low-cost airline Iberia Express has cancelled flights to Tel Aviv through May 31.

KUWAIT AIRWAYS

Flight Resumptions

The airline resumes flights to 17 destinations from Kuwait International Airport on April 26 after authorities reopened the country's airspace. Jazeera Airways, another Kuwaiti airline, restarts service to nine destinations from Kuwait after temporarily shifting operations to Saudi Arabia.

JAPAN AIRLINES

Flight Suspensions and Additions

Japan Airlines has suspended scheduled Tokyo-Doha flights until May 31 and Doha-Tokyo flights until June 1. The airline will also operate extra flights between Tokyo and London on April 25.

LOT

Flight Cancellations

The Polish airline suspended its flights to Tel Aviv until May 31. It also cancelled flights to Riyadh until June 30 and to Beirut from March 31 to May 30. The airline plans to operate its winter route to Dubai in October.

LUFTHANSA GROUP

Mainline Carriers

Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Edelweiss have suspended flights to Dubai and Tel Aviv until May 31. Flights to Abu Dhabi, Amman, Beirut, Dammam, Riyadh, Erbil, Muscat and Tehran are suspended until October 24.

Eurowings

Low-cost carrier Eurowings suspended flights to Tel Aviv until May 11, to Beirut and Erbil until May 14 and to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Amman until October 24.

ITA Airways

ITA Airways extended the suspension of flights to Tel Aviv, Riyadh and Dubai until May 31.

MALAYSIA AIRLINES

Flight Suspensions

The Malaysian carrier suspended flights to Doha until June 14.

NORWEGIAN AIR

Service Launch Delays

The low-cost airline has pushed back planned launches of its Tel Aviv and Beirut services to June 15.

PEGASUS

Flight Cancellations

Turkey's Pegasus Airlines cancelled its Iran, Iraq, Amman, Beirut, Kuwait, Bahrain, Doha, Dammam, Riyadh, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah flights until June 1.

QANTAS

Service Additions

Australia's flag carrier is adding flights to Rome and Paris to meet an upswing in demand for European routes. Flights to Paris will increase to five return flights per week from three and the Perth-Singapore service will increase from daily to 10 flights per week. An updated schedule will come into effect progressively for flights from mid-April and run until late July.

QATAR AIRWAYS

Flight Resumptions

The carrier resumed flights to Dubai and Sharjah from April 23 and will restart daily flights to Damascus from May 1.

ROYAL AIR MAROC

Flight Cancellations

The Moroccan carrier said flights to Doha were cancelled until June 30 and those to Dubai until May 31.

SINGAPORE AIRLINES

Flight Suspensions and Additions

The carrier extended its Singapore-Dubai flight suspension until May 31, while adding services on the Singapore-London Gatwick and Singapore-Melbourne routes from late March until October 24 to meet higher demand.

TURKISH AIRLINES

SunExpress

SunExpress, Turkish Airlines' joint venture with Lufthansa, has cancelled flights to Dubai until April 30.

WIZZ AIR

Flight Delays

The low-cost airline is delaying the return of fl

Key Takeaways

  • Airspace was closed by Iran, Israel, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, and the UAE, triggering widespread flight cancellations—about 24% of regional flights, with over 1,000 grounded Saturday alone. (aljazeera.com)
  • Major Gulf hubs like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha suspended operations. Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways, and other regional carriers were heavily impacted; Etihad halted departures until 2 p.m. on March 1. (apnews.com)
  • Countless international carriers—including Air France‑KLM, Lufthansa, British Airways, Air India, Turkish Airlines, Wizz Air, Japan Airlines, and more—canceled flights to or through Middle Eastern airspace, disrupting global routes and stranding travelers. (tribuneindia.com)

References

Frequently Asked Questions

Which airlines cancelled flights after the US-Israel strike on Iran?
Airlines including AEGEAN, Air India, Air France KLM, British Airways, Emirates, Etihad, Lufthansa, and many others cancelled flights across the Middle East.
Which airspaces were affected by the flight cancellations?
Airspace over Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel, and Bahrain was virtually empty due to the military intervention.
How long will airlines suspend flights to the Middle East?
Suspensions vary by airline, with some halting flights until early March and others monitoring the situation daily.
Did aviation regulators issue any guidance after the conflict?
The EU's aviation regulator recommended airlines avoid affected Middle Eastern airspace following the strikes.
Which cities experienced major airline service disruptions?
Major disruptions affected flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut, Dubai, Amman, Erbil, and other Middle Eastern hubs.

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