Dubai-India flight resumes, but airspace disruptions see cancellation surge – Firstpost

While the aviation sector worldwide breathed a sigh of relief after days of cancellations, major Middle Eastern airlines like Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways continued to face disruptions on Tuesday.

The conflict between Iran, the US and Israel has hit flights across the world, with passengers stranded across the world, and the burden being carried by airports in West Asia.

Flight operations were completely shut off after West Asian countries began closing their airspace on Saturday, as the US and Israel attacked Iran. The situation, however, has improved a little after airlines like Emirates, flydubai and Etihad started operating some special flights from Monday.

The first passenger flight took off from Abu Dhabi on Monday after Iran distanced itself from recent missile and drone strikes across the Gulf, as Etihad Airways resumed limited operations from Zayed International Airport.

War hits aviation sector

As per FlightRadar24, airports that faced disruptions on Tuesday include Dubai International Airport, Doha Hamad International Airport, Abu Dhabi Zayed Airport and Cairo International Airport.

By Monday morning, widespread disruptions had grounded the majority of flights to several Middle Eastern destinations. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, 79 per cent of global flights bound for Qatar and 71 per cent of those heading to the United Arab Emirates were cancelled. The impact was even greater elsewhere in the region, with 81 per cent of flights to Israel and 92 per cent of flights to Bahrain also called off.

The United Arab Emirates’ national carrier, Etihad Airways, announced it was suspending operations until 14:00 local time (10:00 GMT) on Wednesday. Despite the halt, a limited number of ad-hoc flights operated on Monday, including Etihad’s EY67 service to London Heathrow, which touched down at 19:17 GMT.

Private jet prices soar

Meanwhile, prices of private jets have skyrocketed as the uber wealthy try to find a way out of the Emirates.

JetVip, a Muscat-based private aviation brokerage, told the Guardian that the cost of chartering a flight to Istanbul on a Nextant, among the smallest jets available, has surged to around $99,000, approximately triple the typical price. Meanwhile, seats on private charter flights to Moscow are selling for about €20,000 per passenger.

But getting a private jet amid war is not a piece of cake. A representative at the Austria-based AlbaJet charter firm said that its “availability was extremely thin.” “Many aircraft operators won’t perform the flight due to insurance requirements and owner’s decision. So a lot of demand, very little supply,” they said.