Thousands stranded as US, Israeli attacks on Iran hamper travel in Middle East

The course US-Israeli attacks and Iran retaliation attacks have disrupted flights across the Middle East and beyond as countries in the region closed their airspace.

More than 2,400 flights were canceled at Middle East airports on Sunday, according to flight tracker FlightAware. Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports in the United Arab Emirates, and the Qatari capital Doha and Manama in Bahrain were among the airports closed.

Emirates Airlines suspended all flights to and from Dubai until at least Sunday afternoon. Qatar airport was closed until at least Monday morning, according to Qatar Airways. Israeli airspace also remained closed on Sunday. Israeli airline El Al said it was preparing a recovery effort to bring home Israelis stranded abroad once airspace reopened.

United Airlines canceled all flights leaving the US to Tel Aviv until March 6 as well as their corresponding returns “due to the closure of airspace in the region.” Flights to and from Dubai were canceled until March 4, the airline said late Saturday.

Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad typically have around 90,000 passengers a day crossing airport hubs and even more travelers heading to destinations in the Middle East, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.

“For travelers, there’s no way to sugarcoat this,” said Henry Harteveldt, airline industry analyst and president of Atmosphere Research Group. “They should prepare for delays or cancellations over the next few days as these attacks evolve and hopefully end.”

Airlines flying over the Middle East will have to divert their flights around the conflict, with many heading south over Saudi Arabia. That will add hours to those flights and consume additional fuel, increasing costs that airlines will have to absorb. Therefore, ticket prices could begin to rise rapidly if the conflict persists.

Mike McCormick, who used to oversee air traffic control for the Federal Aviation Administration, said that in the coming days these countries could reopen parts of their airspace once U.S. and Israeli officials share with airlines where military flights operate and how capable Iran remains at firing missiles.

“Those countries will then be able to come through and say, ‘Okay, we can reopen this part of our space, but we’ll keep this part of our airspace closed,'” McCormick said. “So I think we’ll see over the next 24 to 36 hours how the use of airspace evolves as kinetic activity becomes more defined and Iran’s ability to fire missiles and create additional risks decreases due to attacks.”

The situation was changing rapidly and airlines urged passengers to check their flight status online before heading to the airport.

Some airlines have issued waivers to affected travelers that will allow them to rebook their flight plans without paying additional fees or higher fees.