Hundreds of thousands of travelers faced disruptions after America and Israel launched an attack on Iran on Saturday, as countries across the region closed their airspace and struck or disrupted key airports that serve as gateways between Europe, Africa and Asia. The closures and strikes led to diversions and cancellations for flights crossing the Middle East, and they also affected flights tied to nearby air corridors.
Several countries in the region shut their airspace, and FlightRadar24 reported that there was “no flight activity” over the United Arab Emirates after the government announced a “temporary and partial closure” of its airspace. The knock-on effects included closures of major hub airports in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha, according to the report. Major airlines that rely on those hubs—including Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad—canceled more than 1,800 flights, with Cirium cited for the scale of passenger flows that typically move through the three hubs each day.
Two airports in the United Arab Emirates reported incidents following strikes, as officials condemned what they described as an attack involving Iranian ballistic missiles. Dubai International Airport said four people were injured, while Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi said one person was killed and seven others were injured in a drone strike, the report said. Strikes were also reported at Kuwait International Airport, further complicating an already unstable operating environment for airlines.
The report said Iran did not publicly claim responsibility, while the scope of retaliatory strikes attributed to Iran by Gulf nations extended beyond American bases that officials had previously said they would target. The aviation impact was immediate: airlines diverted aircraft and canceled international service through the weekend as countries classified parts of the region—including airspace over Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon—as higher-security risk zones at all altitudes.
For travelers trying to get to and through Dubai, Qatar and surrounding destinations, the disruptions often meant uncertainty about when flights would resume. Henry Harteveldt, an airline industry analyst and president of Atmosphere Research Group, said, “For travelers, there’s no way to sugarcoat this,” adding that people should prepare for delays or cancellations for the next few days as attacks evolve. Airlines and aviation trackers also described a rapidly changing operational picture, with many flights diverted to alternative airports or turned around after departing.
A passenger at Newcastle, England, described the difficulty of planning without reliable information. Jonathan Escott said his direct flight to Dubai on Emirates was canceled and that “No one knows,” explaining: “No one really knows what’s going on with the conflict, really. Not Emirates, Emirates don’t have a clue. No one has a clue.” The report also cited FlightAware data showing at least 145 planes en route to cities including Tel Aviv and Dubai early Saturday were diverted to airports such as Athens, Istanbul or Rome, while others returned to their departure points.
Airlines suspended or canceled service to multiple destinations, with additional adjustments for flights that could not safely route through the affected airspace. India’s civil aviation agency designated much of the Middle East as a high-security risk zone, and Turkish Airlines said flights to Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Jordan were suspended until Monday while services to Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman were suspended. U.S. carriers such as Delta Air Lines and United Airlines suspended flights to Tel Aviv at least through the weekend, while British Airways said flights to Tel Aviv and Bahrain would be suspended until next week and flights to Amman, Jordan, were canceled Saturday.
The disruptions also raised operational and cost pressures for airlines and for air traffic control in the region. Airlines crossing the Middle East faced reroutes around the conflict, with many flights headed south over Saudi Arabia—adding hours to trips and consuming additional fuel, the report said. The cancellations and diversions also reduced revenue streams tied to overflight fees, while the report said the added flights could put pressure on air traffic controllers in Saudi Arabia as they adjusted traffic flow to handle the changes safely.
Mike McCormick, a professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University who previously oversaw air traffic control for the Federal Aviation Administration, said that airspace could partially reopen once U.S. and Israeli officials share information with airlines about where military flights operate and how Iran’s missile capabilities affect risk. He said, “Those countries then will be able to go through and say, okay, we can reopen this portion of our space but we’ll keep this portion of our airspace closed,” and added that changes in the next 24 to 36 hours could depend on how quickly the situation becomes more defined. Still, the report noted it was unclear how long disruptions could last, pointing to a prior Israeli and U.S. attack on Iran in June 2025 that lasted 12 days.
Travelers and airlines were urged to monitor flight status online, and several carriers issued waivers to let affected passengers rebook without extra fees or higher fares. Harteveldt urged travelers to plan with flexibility, saying, “Travelers should anticipate that there will be a lot of disruptions,” and adding that if they had not left home, chances were they would not depart as expected for several days. He also said that returning travelers should be “very creative about how you get home.”