Gulf Air: Gulf Air has advised that flights to and from Bahrain are affected, urging passengers to check its website for the latest updates and saying, “In light of current regional airspace closures due to recent developments, a number of Gulf Air flights to and from Bahrain have been canceled or temporarily suspended.”
Air Arabia: Sharjah-based airline Air Arabia has announced suspension of UAE flights until Monday, March 2 at 3p.m. and has extended cancellations to Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq until Tuesday, March 3.
British Airways: A statement on the British Airways website reads: “We are closely monitoring the situation and have canceled a number of our flights to the Middle East. Safety is always our top priority and we would never operate a flight unless it was safe to do so.” Travelers flying between London Heathrow and Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai, or Tel Aviv through March 15 can change their flight date free of charge so long as their new travel date is before March 29. Travelers with flights on or before March 8 are also eligible for a full refund if requested.
Lufthansa: German carrier Lufthansa is suspending all flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Amman, Erbil, Dammam, and Tehran until March 8, and will avoid the airspaces above Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Dammam, and Iran through the same date. Flights to and from Dubai will be suspended until March 4.
Norwegian: Budget carrier Norwegian has canceled all flights until Wednesday. “We have decided to suspend flights to and from Dubai until at least Wednesday, March 4 and we will then assess if it’s possible to resume flights,” a spokesperson for the airline told AFP.
Air India: Air India has suspended all flights to and from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Qatar until midnight on March 3. Select flights to Europe that cannot avoid the airspace above these countries have been canceled, while other flights to Europe and North America will continue utilizing alternate routes.
Virgin Atlantic: Virgin Atlantic has canceled select flights between London Heathrow and Dubai and Riyadh. The latest cancellation at this time was meant to fly March 3 from Dubai to London Heathrow.
KLM: Netherlands flag carrier KLM website states the airline is “currently not flying through the airspace of Iran, Iraq, and Israel, nor over several countries in the Gulf region. Flights to, from, or via destinations in the region are canceled or adjusted.” Key caveats include the suspension of operations to and from Tel Aviv for the remainder of the winter season, and that flights to and from Riyadh, Dammam, and Dubai will not resume until March 5.
What are foreign governments advising?
United States: The US State Department has ordered the departure of non-essential staff and eligible family members from the US embassy in Beirut, a precaution tied explicitly to rising Iran-related tensions. On February 27, the US embassy in Jerusalem also authorized the departure of non-emergency US government personnel and their families from Mission Israel due to what it described as safety risks. In a statement posted on X, the embassy said: “persons may wish to consider leaving Israel while commercial flights are available.” According to reporting by The New York Times, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee emailed staff urging those wishing to depart to do so “today,” warning that the decision would likely result in high demand for airline seats. The move comes amid concerns that Iran could launch retaliatory strikes targeting Israel or US-linked sites in the region.
