Published: 12:45, March 6, 2026 | Updated: 15:16, March 6, 2026
Global flight cancellations top 23,000. Here are the airlines affected
By Agencies
A passenger takes pictures of a flight information board at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai on March 1, 2026 after India's two largest private carriers IndiGo and Air India suspended flights to all destinations in the Middle East. (PHOTO / AFP)
The financial and logistical troubles the Middle East conflict is causing for the global aviation industry are compounding by the day, with the number of canceled flights to Middle East hubs surpassing 27,000 since fighting began even as carriers look to resume some operations.
Thousands of passengers have been stranded in the Gulf region, forcing many to take circuitous, expensive routes to reach functioning airports in Saudi Arabia and Oman. Of the 51,600 scheduled flights to or from the Middle East since Feb 28, more than half have been canceled, according to analytics firm Cirium Ltd.
There are tentative efforts to get things back on track, though.
The United Arab Emirates is establishing safe air corridors to allow for as many as 48 flights an hour. Emirates, the world’s largest international airline, is operating a scaled back flight schedule following the partial reopening of airspace that’s safe for commercial flights.
Here is a list of airlines that have announced adjustments to their regional flight schedules:
Air India
Airline is laying on additional flights.
Between March 5-11, the airline is operating three additional flights between Delhi and Toronto.
Between March 7-10, three extra flights between Delhi and Frankfurt, one extra Delhi-Paris service.
Running Delhi and Mumbai flights via Jeddah on March 5.
Air India said it’s examining running additional flights beyond March 11 in response to high demand and the loss of flights run by Middle East carriers.
Air France-KLM
Air France suspended flights to and from Dubai and Riyadh through March 6, and to and from Tel Aviv and Beirut through March 8, according to its website Wednesday.
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines suspended the remainder of its winter season flights to and from Tel Aviv, starting Sunday. It also halted flights to and from Dammam and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and Dubai until March 6, according to a notice published on its website.
British Airways
Suspended service to Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Tel Aviv.
The airline added daily flights between London and Muscat, Oman, on Friday and Saturday after previously offering service on Thursday. It has added an additional flight on March 8 from Oman to Heathrow.
Cathay Pacific
Canceled services to and from Dubai and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — where the airspace remains open — until March 14.
China Southern
The airline is resuming its Guangzhou-Riyadh flight from March 6, and Shenzhen-Riyadh from March 10.
Delta Air Lines
Flights between New York and Tel Aviv are suspended through at least March 22, according to its website.
A plume of smoke caused by an Iranian strike is seen in the background with an Emirates plane parked at the Dubai International Airport after its closure in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 1, 2026. (PHOTO / AP)
Emirates
Emirates has scrapped more than 2,000 flights since Saturday, among the most severe disruptions ever for the carrier.
The airline is now resuming a limited schedule.
Etihad
The carrier is resuming a limited flight schedule to 26 destinations worldwide starting March 6 until March 19, it says in a post on X.
Services include Bangkok, Cairo, Delhi, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, Moscow, New York JFK, Riyadh, and Toronto
Passengers on existing bookings will be accommodated, while tickets also for sale.
Finnair
Services between Helsinki-Doha on pause until at least March 6, though Qatari airspace remains completely closed to traffic.
Operations to and from Dubai are canceled through March 28.
IndiGo
Budget carrier commenced flights to Athens, Muscat and Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah and Madinah.
It’s also running select repatriation flights to the UAE, it said in a social media post Wednesday.
Korean Air
Flights to Dubai suspended until March 8.
A Lufthansa plane from Muscat, Oman, the first evacuation flight on behalf of the German government, lands at Frankfurt Airport in Frankfurt/Main, Germany, on March 5, 2026. (PHOTO / AP)
Lufthansa Group
All of its airlines suspended flights to Tel Aviv; Beirut; Amman, Jordan; Erbil, Iraq; and Tehran until March 8.
The group also won’t use the airspace over Israel; Lebanon; Jordan; Iraq; Qatar; Kuwait; Bahrain; Dammam, Saudi Arabia; and Iran until March 8.
Flights to and from Dubai and Abu Dhabi are suspended until March 6, and the airspace over the UAE won’t be used during that same period.
Lufthansa will operate an evacuation flight via Oman in the night of March 4 to March 5 on behalf of the German government, using an Airbus A340-300.
Malaysia Airlines
Flights from Kuala Lumpur to Jeddah and Madinah, Saudi Arabia, resumed starting Wednesday.
Services to Doha remain suspended.
Carrier mounting additional flights to and from Paris (March 6), and London Heathrow (March 7 and 8)
Oman Air
Flights to and from Amman, Dubai, Bahrain, Doha, Dammam, Kuwait, Copenhagen, Baghdad and Khasab are canceled through March 6, according to a post on its X.com account.
It also advised travelers coming to Muscat to arrive at the border at least 12 hours before their flight because of congestion.
Oman’s flag carrier says it will operate additional flights to and from Muscat: London Heathrow (March 7-16), Istanbul (March 9-16), Bangkok (March 8-15), Kuala Lumpur (March 8-11), Cairo (March 8-15), and Mumbai (March 7-8).
Passengers' relatives wait ahead of the arrival of a flight from Dubai at Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport on March 4, 2026. (PHOTO / AFP)
Qantas
Qantas is running a charter flight between Sydney and London Heathrow via Singapore on March 7.
Qatar Airways
Operations from its home base of Doha remain halted until further notice and the airline will provide an update Friday morning.
Qatar Airways will run a limited number of relief flights from March 5 for stranded passengers, from Muscat in Oman to London, Berlin, Copenhagen, Madrid, Rome and Amsterdam, and Riyadh to Frankfurt.
Russia
About 12,000 Russian citizens have left the Middle East, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Thursday, according to state newswire Tass.
Russia is organizing evacuation flights through the Emergency Ministry, while several Russian commercial airlines, including Aeroflot, are also conducting evacuation flights.
Russia’s Transport Ministry said the evacuation effort could take up to 10 days and may be completed by March 14. About 50,000 Russian tourists were in the Middle East when the conflict began.
Singapore Airlines
Flights to and from Dubai are canceled until March 15. The airline cites the ongoing geopolitical situation.
SpiceJet
Indian budget carrier laying on around 20 special flights from the UAE to India.
19 flights between March 5-7 from Fujairah to Mumbai and Delhi.
One flight on March 5 from Dubai to Mumbai.
Virgin Atlantic
The airline is resuming flights to Dubai and Riyadh from London after suspending them through March 3.
Copyright 1995 - 2026. All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily. Without written authorization from China Daily, such content shall not be republished or used in any form.