UAE Flight Disruptions Continue as Emirates Cancels Saudi, Kuwait and Peshawar Services and Etihad Cancels Dammam and Jeddah Flights
Why It MattersConcentrated cancellations on Saudi and Kuwait corridors expose how regional security events can quickly strand Gulf hub capacity, even as UAE seat supply grows 23 per cent into winter.
Flight disruptions continue across the UAE, with cancellations affecting services to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India and other international destinations, while several arrivals at Abu Dhabi's Zayed International Airport are delayed. Passengers are being urged to check directly with airlines before travelling to the airport, as schedules can change at short notice. Not all disruptions are related to the regional security situation; some may be due to operational or technical reasons.
Emirates' flight-status page lists cancellations on Dubai routes to Dammam, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait and Peshawar, including EK823, EK827 and EK821 to Dammam, EK801, EK805 and EK803 to Jeddah, EK815, EK819, EK813 and EK817 to Riyadh, and EK853, EK855 and EK859 to Kuwait, plus the corresponding return flights and EK636 and EK637 between Dubai and Peshawar. Some Medina and Kuwait services, including EK857 and EK858, remain scheduled. Some Emirates flights appear as cancelled on Dubai International Airport's arrivals board while the airline's own page lists them as scheduled. Etihad Airways has cancelled all flights between Abu Dhabi and Dammam and Jeddah flights EY601, EY603, EY602 and EY604 through November 5, and reported technical delays affecting EY154 and EY219.
At Zayed International Airport, delayed arrivals include Qatar Airways QR1044 from Doha (scheduled 10:50, revised 11:20), Etihad EY610 from Tel Aviv (11:15 to 12:10), EY596 from Tel Aviv (12:00 to 12:40), Air Arabia Abu Dhabi 3L044 from Kathmandu (13:25 to 14:50), Etihad EY219 from Delhi (06:55 to 17:15) and Pobeda DP753 from Moscow Vnukovo (17:05 to 17:40). On Dubai International Airport's arrivals board, flynas flights XY205, XY811 and XY217 from Gassim and Riyadh are listed as cancelled, and flydubai FZ1240 from Almaty has a revised arrival time of 11:44. flydubai's website showed no status information for routes including Abha, AlUla, Dammam, Riyadh and Yanbu on October 28, which does not by itself confirm cancellation or suspension.
Emirates' codeshare operations with flydubai to and from Tel Aviv remain suspended until further notice following the September 30 security incident involving flydubai flight FZ1073, which diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. Flights by Iranian airlines to and from the UAE, including Iran Airtour services to Dubai, also remain suspended until further notice. Meanwhile, UAE scheduled departing seat capacity rose to 7.2 million in October, up 23 per cent from June, with Dubai International at 4.6 million seats, Zayed International at 1.7 million and Sharjah at 840,000. Up to 36 weekly Dubai–Europe flights are expected to return between late October and December.
Saudi authorities said air defences intercepted two ballistic missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels after explosions were heard in Riyadh, and destroyed three more missiles targeting the eastern region. The US, UK, Australia and Canada have updated travel warnings, and the UK's alerts cover 15 destinations including the UAE.
