West Asia Air Travel Update: IndiGo, Air India Launch Extra Flights; Gulf Airlines Partially Resume Service

Last Updated:March 06, 2026, 14:07 IST

The aviation crisis follows a coordinated US-Israeli strike against Iran on February 28.

Air travel across the Middle East and the Gulf region has been severely disrupted, with the West Asia conflict prompting flight cancellations and airspace closures. The crisis has forced airlines worldwide to cancel flights, change routes, and revise schedules.

Several passengers from across the globe remain stranded in the Gulf nations, with more than 27,000 flights to major Middle East hubs having been cancelled as war rages.

According to a Bloomberg report, citing aviation analytics firm Cirium Ltd, over half of the 51,600 flights scheduled to operate to or from the region since February 28 have been cancelled, leading to widespread disruption and inconvenience to travelers.

Additional Flights To West Asia

Amid airspace curbs and safety concerns, airlines around the world have suspended or modified services to West Asia. Air India has arranged additional flights to manage surging demands. Between March 5 and 11, the airline is operating three additional flights between Delhi and Toronto — in a bid to dilute the financial damage caused by the West Asia crisis.

The airline has also scheduled three extra flights between Delhi and Frankfurt from March 7 to 10, along with one additional Delhi-to-Paris service.

As tensions continue to escalate in the region, Air France has suspended flights to Dubai and Riyadh until March 6. Similarly, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has suspended its remaining winter season flights to Tel Aviv.

It has also cancelled services to Dammam, Riyadh and Dubai until Friday, March 6. In addition, Singapore Airlines has also announced the cancellation of services to and from Dubai until March 15.

British Airways has cancelled flights to Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Tel Aviv. The airline has also introduced extra flights between London and Muscat to offset the loss of services caused by the unrest.

Gulf Airlines Resume Flight Ops 

Despite the tense situation in West Asia, some Gulf carriers have partially resumed flight operations. Etihad Airways resumed a limited commercial flight schedule from Abu Dhabi on Friday.

The temporary schedule aims to connect Abu Dhabi with multiple destinations across Asia, Europe, and North America.

Dubai-based Emirates has cancelled more than 2,000 flights since the start of the war. However, the airline has started operating a restricted schedule following the partial reopening of regional airspace.

Flydubai has resumed limited flight operations across its network.

Indian Aviation Affected 

According to the Civil Aviation Ministry, 281 flights scheduled to operate on Thursday by Indian domestic carriers were cancelled as airlines adjusted their schedules in response to escalations in West Asia.

Indian airlines have introduced additional services to adjust passenger movement. With partial airspace opening, IndiGo resumed flights to Athens, Muscat and Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah and Madinah.

SpiceJet has scheduled around 20 special flights from the UAE to India between March 5 and 7, including a Dubai-Mumbai flight.

The aviation crisis follows a coordinated US-Israeli strike against Iran on February 28. In retaliation, Tehran launched aerial attacks on military facilities linked to Washington in the Gulf.

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