Airlines cancel flights to Doha, Dubai; schedule changes for Australian passengers

Read the latest update on flight diversions here.

Airlines carrying Australians to Europe have switched their routes to avoid the Middle East region that is embroiled in conflict, following the US and Israel’s bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites.

Qatar Airways, which flies daily from Australia’s cities to Doha, says the ongoing situation “will require some schedule changes to strengthen the connectivity”.

Workers handle luggage at the Qatar Airways ticketing area at the international airport in Los Angeles, Friday.Credit: AP

The airline, part owner of Virgin Australia, says, “We are continuously monitoring and assessing the situation, and reacting in real-time to ensure we operate under the safest conditions possible at all times.”

Qantas has indicated no major changes to its flights. Qantas has no stopovers in the Middle East, so its passengers and crew are not affected when planes are grounded in the region by airspace closures.

However, the airline continues to closely monitor the situation following the escalation of hostilities over the weekend, when the US Air Force and Navy mounted a significant attack on three nuclear facilities in Iran.

The attack followed a week of conflict between Tehran and Tel Aviv with hundreds of missile and drone launches between the two foes.

British Airways flights from London Heathrow to the Middle East were turned back on Sunday following US airstrikes on Iran.Credit: Bloomberg

Singapore Airlines said on Sunday it had cancelled two flights between Singapore and Dubai, warning more cancellations could come. Following a security assessment of the “geopolitical situation in the Middle East”, Singapore Airlines cancelled SQ494 departing Singapore for Dubai on 22 June, and SQ495 departing Dubai for Singapore on the same day.

“As the situation remains fluid, other Singapore Airlines flights between Singapore and Dubai may be affected,” the company said, adding that customers affected by flight cancellations “will be re-accommodated on alternative flights or can seek a full refund of the unused portion of their ticket”.

It also urged passengers to monitor the flight status page and to update their contact details used on bookings.

“At this stage, it doesn’t seem that there are wholesale delays that are being caused by [the conflict],” said Ellis Taylor, from aviation analytics firm Cirium. “There’ve been a number of airspace restrictions in place around Israel for the last week. So airlines have largely mitigated that.”

Emirates, which provides 77 weekly flights between Dubai – a city in the United Arab Emirates – and Australia, has been contacted for comment.

The switches affecting Australians come as the global industry reacts to the war that has ensnared the region.

London-based British Airways cancelled several flights to Dubai and diverted two planes bound for the emirate overnight, according to data from Flightradar24.

One flight took off from Heathrow Airport on Saturday night but was diverted to Zurich after it reached Saudi Arabia’s airspace in the early hours of Sunday. Another Dubai-bound jet returned to Heathrow after going as far as Egypt.

British Airways said it had adjusted its flight schedule to ensure the safety of customers and crew.

Airlines have been avoiding flying over large parts of the Middle East – including Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel – since Israel launched missiles at Iran on June 13. Until recent days, significant cancellations to major hubs such as Qatar and the UAE had been largely avoided.

“The primary risk in Iran is a [misidentification] by Iranian air defence systems,” said Safe Airspace, a website that tracks conflict zones and risks for the aviation industry.

“Iran has shown willingness to use long-range, advanced anti-aircraft-capable weapons during heightened tensions and in close proximity to heavily flown international air routes (for example: the shoot-down of Ukraine International Airlines flight 752 over Tehran).”

The website said the main risk in Israel is from rocket and missile attacks from Iran, Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Houthis in Yemen.

“The secondary risk is a multitude of factors from operating in a conflict zone: misidentification, debris from air defences, GPS spoofing ... and reduced route and diversion options in the event of an aircraft emergency.”

The moves highlight growing worries in a part of the Middle East that is typically considered safe and sheltered from regional dislocations.

Safe Airspace warned on Sunday that the conflict could, in particular, heighten the threat to American airlines operating in the region.

“While there have been no specific threats made against civil aviation, Iran has previously warned it would retaliate by attacking US military interests in the Middle East – either directly or via proxies such as Hezbollah.”

The hostilities in the region come as Virgin Australia’s agreement to increase flights to the Middle East begins with Qatar Airways. Qatar operates five daily flights from capital cities to Doha, which is a gateway to Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

A five-year agreement between Qatar and Qantas rival Virgin Australia, which came into effect this month, adds another four daily flights from Australia’s capital cities to Doha. Qatar owns 25 per cent of Virgin, which plans to relist on the ASX on Tuesday.

FlightRadar24 showed airlines were not flying over Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel. They have chosen other routes, such as north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, even if these result in higher fuel and crew costs, and longer flight times.

Missile and drone barrages in an expanding number of conflict zones globally represent a high risk to airline traffic.

With Russian and Ukrainian airspace also closed due to war, the Middle East region had become an even more important route for international flights between Europe and Asia.

“If there’s some retaliation against US interests in the Middle East, that changes the picture quite radically. We know, for instance, there are a number of US bases in Qatar, and if they were to become a target, then obviously shutting Qatari airspace would likely happen and that therefore you impact the operations of that airline through that.”

Safe Airspace said it was possible that airspace risks could now extend to countries including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The state of play in the air

AEGEAN AIRLINES: Greece’s Aegean Airlines cancelled all flights to and from Tel Aviv up to and including the early morning flight on July 12, as well as all flights to and from Beirut, Amman, and Erbil through the morning arrivals of June 28.

AIRBALTIC: Latvia’s airBaltic has cancelled all flights to and from Tel Aviv until September 30.

AEROFLOT: Russia’s Aeroflot said that it has cancelled flights between Moscow and Tehran, and made changes to other routes in the Middle East after the first round of Israeli strikes on Iran.

AIR EUROPA: The Spanish airline has cancelled all flights to and from Tel Aviv until July 31.

AIR FRANCE: Air France has suspended all flights to and from Tel Aviv until further notice. 

AMERICAN AIRLINES: All flights to Doha have been suspended.

ARKIA: The Israeli airline said that it was cancelling all its flights until June 21.

AZERBAIJAN AIRLINES: The Azeri airline has suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv until June 30.

BLUEBIRD AIRWAYS: The Greek airline has cancelled all flights to and from Israel until at least June 30.

BRITISH AIRWAYS: The UK flagship has cancelled all Tel Aviv flights until July 31 and all flights to Amman and Bahrain until the end of June. It has also paused flights to Doha and Dubai.

DELTA AIR LINES: The US carrier will not guarantee any travel to, from or through Tel Aviv until August 31.

EL AL ISRAEL AIRLINES: All scheduled flights cancelled or closed to new bookings until at least July 15.

ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES: All flights suspended between Addis Ababa and Tel Aviv.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS: All flights cancelled between Abu Dhabi and Amman until June 20 and between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv until June 30.

EMIRATES: The UAE carrier has suspended flights to and from Jordan, Lebanon, Iran and Iraq until at least June 30.

FLYDUBAI: The airline has suspended flights to and from Iran, Iraq, Israel and Syria until June 30.

IBERIA EXPRESS: The airline has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv until June 30.

ISRAIR: The Israeli airline has cancelled all flights from and to Israel until June 30.

ITA AIRWAYS: The Italian Airline has suspended Tel Aviv flights until August 1.

KLM: The Dutch carrier has cancelled all flights to and from Tel Aviv until at least July 1. Some flights to, from or via Beirut until June 29 may be disrupted.

LUFTHANSA: The German carrier has suspended all flights to and from Beirut up to and including June 30, and to and from Tel Aviv and Tehran up to and including July 31. Flights to and from Amman and Erbil are cancelled until July 11.  

PEGASUS: The Turkish airline has cancelled flights to Iran until June 30 and flights to Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan until June 23.

QATAR AIRWAYS: The Doha-based airline has temporarily cancelled flights to and from Iraq, Iran and Syria.

RYANAIR: The European budget airline has cancelled flights to and from Tel Aviv until September 30.

SINGAPORE AIRLINES: All flights to the Persian Gulf may be affected.

TAROM: Romania’s flag carrier has suspended all commercial flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut and Amman until at least June 24.

TRANSAVIA: KLM’s budget airline has cancelled flights to and from Tel Aviv, Amman and Beirut until at least June.

TUS AIRWAYS: The Cypriot airline has cancelled all its flights to and from Israel scheduled until June 24 (inclusive). Flights scheduled for departure between June 25 and June 30 are closed for sale.

UNITED AIRLINES: The US carrier says all travel to Tel Aviv could be until at least August 1. Flights to Dubai have been suspended.

WIZZ AIR: All operations to and from Tel Aviv and Amman suspended until at least September 15. The Hungarian airline will avoid flying over Israel, Iraq, Iran and Syria until further notice.

With Bloomberg, Reuters

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