British Airways stopping flights to war torn Middle East country until later this year
British Airways has cancelled all flights to various parts of the Middle East amid the Iran conflict.
In a statement today, the airline said all flights to and from Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Tel Aviv this month have been cancelled.
All flights to and from Abu Dhabi won’t run until ‘later this year’.
British Airways said the stripped-back flight schedule was due to ‘continuing uncertainty’ in the Middle East and ‘airspace instability’.
The statement said that the airline is also suspending its daily rescue flights from Muscat after Thursday due to reduced demand.
It added: ‘We’re keeping the situation under constant review and are in touch with our customers to offer them a range of options.
‘…We’re in touch with customers who we believe continue to be in the [United Arab Emirates] to support them and provide options for travel to the UK.
‘We’re asking customers who’ve made alternative arrangements to let us know.’
The airline warned customers that scammers are impersonating the company and asking for personal information and payment details.
Users responding to British Airways’ update on X were flooded by phoney BA customer service accounts.
All typically asked impacted passengers to message them with their name, email, mobile number and even home address.
One user shared screenshots of conversations with scam Qatar Airways representatives, with one even organising a nonexistent rescue flight.
Countries in the Middle East have responded to the US and Israel-led attack on Iran by closing a key corridor of airspace.
Major airlines have cancelled thousands of flights or scrambled to divert them away from affected areas.
Some, such as Emirates, are now running a reduced flight schedule.
Airports in the Middle East are among the world’s busiest, often acting as connection hubs for tens of thousands of international travellers.
Which airlines have cancelled flights to the Middle East?
Argean Airlines
- Greece’s top airline has halted flights to Dubai and Abu Dhabi until March 19 and to Riyadh until March 14.
- Trips to Tel Aviv aren’t taking off until March 20 and flights to Beirut, Erbil and Baghdad until March 25.
Air Baltic
- No flights run by Latvia’s air carrier from Dubai until March 16 and from Tel Aviv until March 28.
Air Europa
- The Spanish company has cancelled all journeys to Tel Aviv until March 20.
Air France
- No flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut until Friday, while no planes will be setting off for Dubai or Riyadh until Thursday.
KLM
- The Netherlands airline has suspended all flights to Tel Aviv for the rest of the winter season.
Cathay Pacific
- The Hong Kong aviation firm has scrapped all flights to and from Dubai and to and from Riyadh until March 31.
Delta
- The US airline won’t serve New York to Tel Aviv until March 22, and Tel Aviv to New York until the day after.
Emirates
- The UAE airline is operating a scaled-back flight plan.
Finnair
- No flights to Doha or Dubai on this Finnish carrier until March 29/
IAG
- The budget carrier, which is owned by British Airways, has cancelled flights to Tel Aviv, Amman, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Dubai and Doha until Thursday.
Japan Airlines
- No Tokyo-Doha flights will take off until March 21.
Lufthansa Group
- This aviation titan, which includes Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Swiss and Brussels Airlines, has binned flights to Tel Aviv through April 2 and to Beirut through March 28
Norwegian Air
- No planes will touch ground in Tel Aviv or Beirut until June 15.
Saudi Airlines
- No Moscow and Peshawar flights until Sunday.
Turkish Airways
- All Iranian flights were stripped from their flight programme until Thursday. While flights to Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan were cancelled through to Friday.
Wizz Air
- The low-cost airline won’t serve Israel until March 29 and Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Amman and Jeddah until September.
Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.