UPDATED Friday 27
Qatar Airways has said in a statement all of the roughly 20,000 passengers who were on flights that were diverted on Monday night after Iran fired missiles towards a U.S. military base in the Gulf country were put on new flights within 24 hours.
In an in an open letter Qatar Airways CEO Badr Mohammed Al-Meer said that at the time of the attack, over 90 Qatar Airways flights heading to Doha “were forced to divert immediately” while more than 10,000 passengers were already in transit at Doha’s airport. The company operated its business continuity plans, sending flights to other locations, increasing capacity on other flights and quickly managing logistical challenges.
With Qatar’s airspace now open, Doha airport is also open and officials have announced flights can resume as normal.
Qatar Airways announced passengers with travel up to and including 30 June 2025 wishing to change their travel can do so without playing a fee until 15 July 2025.
Qantas said it was closely monitoring the situation in the Middle East and offered the ability to change flights flying to or via Dubai fee-free for flights booked before 23 June for travel to 27 June 2025.
UPDATED Tuesday 24
On Sunday, the U.S. attacked key Iranian nuclear sites and Tehran responded on Monday by firing several missiles at the U.S. base without killing or injuring anyone.
The escalating tensions are starting to affect airlines beyond the Middle East, where major flight routes have already been cut off since Israel began strikes on Iran on June 13.
Today Qatar Airways confirmed on its website some flights had been temporarily suspended. “We are working closely with government stakeholders and the relevant authorities to support any passengers that have been impacted, and will resume operations when the airspace re-opens.”
Following the Doha attack, Emirates said a number of its flights were ‘rerouted’ enroute to Dubai, but there were no diversions.
‘After a thorough and careful risk assessment, Emirates will continue to operate flights as scheduled, using flight paths well distanced from conflict areas’, it said in an update on its website.
‘Some flights may incur delays due to longer re‑routings or airspace congestion, but Emirates’ teams are working hard to keep to schedule and minimise any disruption or inconvenience to our customers’.
The conflict has already cut off major flight routes to typically resilient aviation hubs such as Dubai, with the world’s busiest international airport, and Qatar’s capital of Doha. The usually busy airspace stretching from Iran and Iraq to the Mediterranean resembles a ghost town, devoid of commercial air traffic due to the airspace closures and safety concerns.
Air India said on Monday it had stopped all operations to the Middle East, but also flights to North America’s east coast and Europe. This included diverting flights already in the air back to their takeoff site, and away from closed airspaces.
“It’s terrifying,” said Miret Padovani, a business owner who was stranded at Doha’s Hamad International Airport. She was booked on a Qatar Airways flight to Thailand scheduled to leave late Monday, but cancelled her trip and is now planning on returning home to Dubai early on Tuesday.
“Everything happened so quick. I actually heard from people in the first class lounge that the missiles were being sent this way before they were even in the news.”
According to aviation analytics company Cirium, about two dozen flights to Doha, mostly from Qatar Airways, were diverted on Monday, and about a handful of flights to Dubai were diverted due to the airspace closures.
Singapore Airlines, one of the highest-profile in Asia, had called the situation “fluid” on Sunday as it cancelled flights from Singapore to Dubai following a security assessment.
On Monday Qatar Airways, that flies daily from Australia’s cities to Doha, put out an alert saying the airline has ‘retimed a number of flights for the coming weeks’ to ‘ensure connectivity and minimise disruptions’. It said in some cases, departure times may be earlier than originally scheduled.
It advised passengers to check the status of their flight and travel alerts.
Rerouting now common
With Russian and Ukrainian airspace also closed to most airlines due to years of war, the Middle East has become a more important route for flights between Europe and Asia. Amid missile and air strikes during the past 10 days, airlines have routed north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Carriers have likely been avoiding Doha, Dubai and other airports in the region due to concerns that Iran or its proxies could target drone or missile attacks on U.S. military bases in these countries, aviation risk consultancy Osprey Flight Solutions said.
Air France KLM said on Sunday that it cancelled flights to and from Dubai and Riyadh on Sunday and Monday. British Airways, owned by IAG ICAG.L, also cancelled flights to and from Dubai and Doha.
Missile and drone barrages in a growing number of conflict zones represent a high risk to airline traffic, and an organization that monitors flight risks, Safe Airspace, a website run by OPSGROUP, warned on Sunday that U.S. attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites could heighten the threat to American operators in the region.
In the days before the U.S. strikes, American Airlines suspended flights to Qatar and United Airlines did the same with flights to Dubai.
Airlines are also concerned about a potential spike in oil prices following the U.S. attacks, which will increase the cost of jet fuel.
Israel meanwhile is ramping up flights to help stranded travellers at home and abroad. The country’s Airports Authority says that so-called rescue flights to the country would expand on Monday with 24 a day, although each flight would be limited to 50 passengers. Israeli airline El Al on Sunday said it had received applications to leave the country from about 25,000 people in about a day.
The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) confirmed it was sending a plane and personnel in order to to assist any New Zealanders stranded in Iran or Israel. While airspace in Israel and Iran remains heavily restricted, the Defence Force says positioning a plane in the region offers the best ability to be able to act when airspace reopens.
