Major airports in the Middle East, including Dubai - the world's busiest international aviation hub - are closed for the 3rd consecutive day amid the most serious aviation shock since the COVID-19 pandemic paralyzed the industry.
On the morning of March 2, 1,239 flights were canceled. Emirates Airlines, headquartered in Dubai; Etihad Airways, headquartered in Abu Dhabi; and Qatar Airways, headquartered in Doha; together canceled hundreds of flights.
Other airlines have also canceled services across the region. Air India canceled March 1st flights departing from Delhi, Mumbai and Amritsar to major cities in Europe and North America.
Nearly 2,800 flights were canceled on February 28 and March 1. 156 flights were canceled on March 1, according to flight tracking platform FlightAware.
Henry Harteveldt - aviation industry analyst and Chairman of Atmosphere Research Group - said: "You should prepare for delays or cancellations in the next few days as these attacks unfold and hopefully will end.
The airspace of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel, Bahrain, UAE and Qatar remains almost empty as of March 2, according to Flightradar24.
Among the airlines most affected are: Emirates Airlines - the world's largest international airline - has temporarily suspended all scheduled flights to and from Dubai until 3 pm on March 2, UAE time.
Etihad Airways has temporarily suspended all flights to and from Abu Dhabi until 2 pm on March 2, UAE time.
Qatar Airways has also temporarily suspended flight operations due to the closure of Qatar's airspace.
As the conflict spread to Lebanon, with Israeli airstrikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut, much of the airspace in the area remained closed. Important airports, including Abu Dhabi in the UAE and Doha in Qatar, were closed or strictly restricted.
Crews and pilots are currently scattered around the world, complicating the process of resuming flights when airspace is reopened.
While many passengers are struggling to find information about the status of planned flights, concentrated at some of the world's busiest commercial airports amid widespread delays and cancellations, the super-rich have found an alternative route to leave the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia is the only truly feasible option for those who want to leave this region right now" - Ameerh Naran, CEO of private aircraft brokerage firm Vimana Private, told Semafor. Estimated cost of renting a private plane from Riyadh to Europe is up to 350,000 USD.
The region and airlines have been accustomed to traffic disruptions for the past few years, but such a prolonged airspace closure - more than 24 hours - and the suspension of operations of all 3 major transit centers in the Gulf region are unprecedented, analysts said.
Some flights have been diverted to avoid airspace being closed or restricted. Flight routes through Iranian and Iraqi airspace have become more important since the Russia-Ukraine conflict forced airlines to avoid the airspace of both countries.
The closure of Middle East airspace currently narrows the operations of airlines to narrower corridors, with the Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict increasing risks, Ian Petchenik, communications director at Flightradar24, noted.
