Gulf flight suspensions: latest updates – Tuesday 3 March

Following ongoing conflict in the Gulf, as of 3 March, four UAE airports – Dubai International (DXB), Dubai World Central – Al Maktoum (DWC), Zayed International (AUH) and Sharjah (SHJ) – have resumed limited operations, and a UAE-Oman bus service has been introduced to ship passengers to Muscat International Airport.

 

Direct departures from the UAE began around 6pm on 2 March and by 11am on 3 March, six Emirates flights and three Etihad flights had successfully left the country, mostly flying to major European hubs, transporting stranded passengers back home. However, airspace closures remain in place across much of the region, including Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Israel, Iraq and Iran.

 

Oman and Saudi Arabia are maintaining partial operations. Saudi is facilitating select domestic and international services to South Asia and Africa. Key hubs – Riyadh’s King Khalid International, Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International and Dammam’s King Fahd International – remain open, though passengers face cancellations and delays as schedules are adjusted. Oman’s Muscat International Airport is also operating a limited schedule, with flag carrier Oman Air serving London and Istanbul today (3 March). Passengers are advised to check flight status and local advisories before travelling to any local airport.

 

Here are key updates from GCC carriers.

 

UAE

Emirates: Emirates will currently only operate select repatriation and freighter flights on 3 and 4 March, while all all other services to and from Dubai will be halted until 4 March at 23:59 local time. Services initially resumed on the evening of Tuesday 2 March, with a total of six flights departing from Dubai to destinations including London, Paris and Frankfurt. 

 

Passengers are advised not to go to the airport unless notified, as all other flights are halted until further notice. All Emirates city check-in points across Dubai also remain closed. Under the current rebooking and refund policy, passengers may “rebook on another flight to their intended destination for travel on or before 20 March” or request a refund by completing the refund form.

 

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Etihad: Etihad Airways temporarily resumed operations on the evening of 2 March, operating 15 passenger flights during a three-hour window, according to data from FlightRadar24. At the time of writing, three flights departed Abu Dhabi on morning of 3 March, heading to London, Frankfurt and Jeddah. However, the carrier has re-suspended commercial flights to and from Abu Dhabi until 4 March at 14:00 UAE time. 

 

Under the current rebooking and refund policy, guests holding Etihad tickets issued on or before 28 February 2026, with original travel dates up to 7 March 2026, may rebook "free of charge" onto Etihad-operated flights up to 18 March 2026, while those on all Etihad flights until 7 March may request a refund at etihad.com/en/help/refund-form or through their travel agent.

 

FlyDubai: Four Flydubai flights departed on the evening of 2 March, with one flight to Baku departing the morning of 3 March. Under the current rebooking and refund policy, passengers may “rebook on an alternative flight to the same destination up to 20 days from the original travel date” free of charge.

 

Air Arabia: Flights to and from the UAE are halted until 4 March at 15:00 local time, while services to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Iraq have been suspended until 5 March. To rebook flights due to depart in the next 24 hours, click here for an alternative option.

 

Beond: Beond, a Maldivian airline with Dubai-based headquarters, is continuing its services to Munich, Milan and Zurich as normal. However, flights will no longer connect in Dubai, resulting in possible delays and longer travel times.