Stock Markets March 16, 2026

Airlines Continue Widespread Cancellations as Middle East Airspace Remains Disrupted

Closures of major Gulf hubs leave tens of thousands stranded as carriers suspend routes and publish revised timetables

By Caleb Monroe
Airlines Continue Widespread Cancellations as Middle East Airspace Remains Disrupted

Airlines across the globe have suspended services to and from multiple Middle Eastern destinations following the closure of key airspace and disruptions at major hubs. The shutdowns have prompted a raft of cancellations and temporary route suspensions affecting flights to and from cities including Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Tel Aviv and Riyadh, with carriers issuing revised schedules that extend into late March and beyond for some routes.

Key Points

  • Closures of major Middle Eastern airspace and incidents at Gulf hubs have forced extensive flight cancellations across many international carriers.
  • Cancellations affect national carriers, low-cost airlines and multinational airline groups, disrupting routes to Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Tel Aviv, Riyadh and several other regional cities.
  • Sectors impacted include passenger aviation, airport operations and travel-dependent services, with potential near-term effects on airline revenues and operational planning.

Global aviation continues to face severe disruption as regional conflict led to the closure of critical Middle Eastern airspace and forced cancellations at major hubs. Tens of thousands of passengers remain affected as carriers around the world suspend or reduce services to destinations in the region. Below is the latest status of flight cancellations and suspensions, presented alphabetically by airline, based on carriers' notices.


AEGEAN AIRLINES - Greece's largest carrier has cancelled flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Erbil and Baghdad until March 29. Services to Dubai are cancelled until March 28 and flights to Riyadh are cancelled until March 27.

AIR BALTIC - Latvia's airBaltic reported that all flights to Tel Aviv are cancelled until March 28. Additionally, flights to Dubai are cancelled through March 30.

AIR CANADA - The Canadian carrier has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv until May 2 and has suspended all services to Dubai until March 28.

AIR EUROPA - The Spanish airline has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv through March 20.

AIR FRANCE KLM - Air France has cancelled flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Dubai and Riyadh until March 17. KLM has suspended flights to Riyadh, Dammam and Dubai until March 28, and has said that flights to Tel Aviv are suspended for the remainder of its winter season.

AIR INDIA - Air India and Air India Express temporarily suspended all Dubai operations on March 16.

CATHAY PACIFIC - The Hong Kong carrier said it had cancelled all flights to and from Dubai and to and from Riyadh until March 31.

DELTA - The U.S. carrier has cancelled New York-Tel Aviv flights until March 31 and the return Tel Aviv-New York services until April 1. Delta has delayed the restart of its Atlanta-Tel Aviv service; flights to Tel Aviv are now paused until August 4 and flights from Tel Aviv are paused until August 5.

EL AL ISRAEL AIRLINES - The Israeli flag carrier's regular flights were cancelled until March 21.

EMIRATES - Emirates said it expected to operate a limited Dubai schedule from March 16 after authorities brought under control a fire caused by a drone near Dubai International Airport, an incident that had forced a suspension of flights. The airline's website acknowledged that some flights on its March 16 schedule were cancelled.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS - Etihad resumed a limited commercial flight schedule between Abu Dhabi and a number of key destinations, while maintaining constrained operations.

FINNAIR - The Finnish carrier cancelled flights to Dubai until March 29 and to Doha until April 2, and stated it would continue to avoid Iraqi, Iranian, Syrian and Israeli airspace.

FLYNAS - Saudi Arabian low-cost carrier Flynas extended suspensions of flights to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Doha, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq and Syria until March 31.

IAG - IAG-owned British Airways cancelled all flights to Abu Dhabi until later this year; it also cancelled all flights to Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Tel Aviv until later in March.

INDIGO - The Indian carrier has suspended operations to Doha, Kuwait, Bahrain, Dammam, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah until March 28.

JAPAN AIRLINES - Japan Airlines suspended Tokyo-Doha flights that were scheduled from February 28 to March 31, and suspended Doha-Tokyo flights until April 1.

LOT - Poland's LOT has cancelled all flights to Dubai until March 28 and to Tel Aviv until March 31. The airline also cancelled flights to Riyadh until March 24 and announced cancellations to Beirut from March 31 to April 30.

LUFTHANSA GROUP - The German airline group, which includes Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Swiss, Brussels Airlines and ITA Airways, suspended flights to Tel Aviv through April 2, and suspended services to Beirut, Dubai, Amman, Erbil and Abu Dhabi until March 28. Flights to Tehran were suspended through April 30 and flights to Dammam were suspended until March 15.

MALAYSIA AIRLINES - The Malaysian carrier suspended all flights to Doha until March 20.

NORWEGIAN AIR - Norwegian Air plans to postpone flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut; services to Tel Aviv are now planned from June 15 instead of April 1, and services to Beirut are planned from June 15 instead of April 4, according to the carrier's revised schedule.

PEGASUS - Pegasus Airlines cancelled flights to Iran, Iraq, Amman, Beirut, Kuwait, Bahrain, Doha, Dammam, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah until March 31. Flights to Riyadh are cancelled until March 23.

QATAR AIRWAYS - Qatar Airways said its scheduled operations remain temporarily suspended due to the closure of Qatari airspace and that it will operate a revised, limited number of flights from March 18 to March 28.

TURKISH AIRLINES - The Turkish transport ministry announced that Turkish Airlines cancelled flights to Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Bahrain and Dammam until March 19, while flights to Iran were cancelled until March 20.

WIZZ AIR - The low-cost carrier suspended flights to Israel until March 29 and suspended services from mainland European destinations to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Amman and Jeddah until the middle of September.


Passengers impacted by these cancellations are likely encountering a range of operational responses from airlines, including route suspensions, revised timetables and limited return-to-service plans. The scope of cancellations spans national carriers, low-cost airlines and multinational groups, with affected destinations concentrated across the Gulf, Levant and parts of the broader Middle East.

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The situation remains fluid as carriers continue to update schedules and issue advisories for customers. Travelers booked on affected routes should consult their airline for the most current information.

Risks

  • Persisting airspace restrictions and regional security incidents could extend cancellations and limit airlines' ability to restore full schedules, affecting airline revenue and passenger itineraries.
  • Widespread route suspensions increase operational complexity for carriers, potentially raising costs for repositioning aircraft, crew rescheduling and passenger accommodations.
  • Extended disruptions at major hubs may weigh on adjacent sectors such as airport retail, ground handling, and tourism-dependent businesses, prolonging economic impact until services normalize.

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