After the airspace in the Middle East region was gradually reopened, many international airlines have begun to restore flight operations and deploy special flights to relieve a large number of passengers stranded in recent days.
Emirates airline said it is making efforts to restore the entire flight network after a week of disruption due to conflicts in the region. From March 7, the airline plans to operate 106 round-trip flights per day to 83 destinations, equivalent to nearly 60% of the global flight network.
According to the plan, Emirates aims to restore 100% capacity in the coming days, depending on airspace conditions and operating requirements. The airline also prioritizes transporting previously booked passengers and recommends only arriving at the airport when flight confirmation is available.
The resumption of operations took place after some major airports in the region such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi (UAE) and King Khalid (Saudi Arabia) reopened from March 5, as airspace gradually eased.
During the restoration process, Emirates has deployed special flight corridors to relieve stranded passengers. On March 5 alone, about 30,000 passengers were arranged to leave Dubai to reduce pressure on the transit airport.
In addition to Emirates, many other airlines have also begun to resume operations. Etihad Airways has restored its restricted flight schedule from central Abu Dhabi, while Qatar Airways is deploying repatriation flights from Doha to major cities such as London, Paris, Madrid, Rome and Frankfurt to bring stranded passengers back.
In addition, some international airlines such as British Airways, Finnair or Virgin Atlantic also added special flights from the Middle East region to transport passengers home.
According to data from Flightradar24, since the conflict broke out on February 28, nearly 14,000 flights scheduled to depart from 10 countries in the region have been canceled. Dubai International Airport - one of the world's largest air transit hubs - has been heavily affected when about 85% of flights were canceled since the end of February. Neighboring airports such as Sharjah and Doha also recorded a disruption rate of up to 90-94%.
According to updates from the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam on March 7, many flight information areas (FIR) in the Middle East still apply restrictive measures due to security situations. The Tehran (Iran) Flight Information Area is closed to most civil flights until March 15, except for rescue, military or specially licensed flights.
Some areas of FIR Doha (Qatar) and FIR Emirates (UAE) are also only allowed to operate with restrictions, and strict air traffic control measures are applied. Many air routes in the area are temporarily closed due to military activities, forcing airlines to adjust routes and increase backup fuel to ensure safety.
In the Vietnamese market, three Middle Eastern airlines including Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways currently operate routes from major transit hubs such as Dubai, Jebel Ali, Abu Dhabi and Doha to Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, with a frequency of about 12 flights per day before the conflict occurred.
The domestic airline most clearly affected is Vietnam Airlines. Although no airline operates direct routes to the Middle East, Vietnam Airlines' flights from Vietnam to Europe are forced to change routes to avoid Iranian, Iraqi airspace and conflict zones.
Currently, flights are adjusted in two directions: the northern corridor through Central Asia or China, or the southern corridor through South Asia and the Arabian Peninsula. Round-trip flights make each flight longer by 10-15 minutes, and operating costs increase by about 2,000 USD.
If the conflict continues to escalate, Vietnam Airlines may also have to pay additional war risk insurance premiums, estimated to increase by 10-15% for aircraft operating intercontinental routes passing through areas near the conflict zone.
According to airlines, the complete restoration of the flight network in the Middle East still depends on security developments and the reopening of airspace in the region. However, international flight operations are gradually being resumed, contributing to restoring air routes connecting the Middle East with many regions around the world, including Vietnam.
