British Airways set to resume Dubai flights as UAE airport disruptions continue
British Airways plans to restore its London Heathrow–Dubai service on November 3, 2026, after an eight-month suspension. The restart comes as passengers across the UAE face cancellations and delays, including on several Saudi Arabia routes.
Omar Al Nuaimi
Heathrow service returns for winter
The Dubai route has been suspended since the end of February because of regional conflict in the Middle East, according to Travelextra's November 2 report. British Airways is scheduled to begin with one flight a day for the winter 2026 season.
Travelextra reported that the airline will use Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners, with one-way economy fares starting at £340. British Airways plans to expand the service to twice daily in summer 2027.
More Dubai connections are due to return in the coming weeks: Lufthansa, SWISS and Eurowings are scheduled to resume service on November 25, followed by Austrian Airlines on December 12. Philippine Airlines, Air Astana and Aegean Airlines have already returned.
Cancellations and delays across UAE airports
November 3 flight listings at Dubai International (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC) show disruptions to both arrivals and departures. At DXB, canceled arrivals include flydubai flights from Moscow Vnukovo and Kathmandu, several flynas services from Riyadh and a Saudia flight from Riyadh. EgyptAir, Iraqi Airways, flynas, Saudia and Airblue also have canceled departures. Delayed services include flights operated by SpiceJet, Pobeda and flydubai.
At Abu Dhabi, the affected flights include services operated by Air Arabia Abu Dhabi, Etihad Airways and Pakistan International Airlines. The reported disruptions do not all stem from the conflict or regional security conditions; operational, technical and other issues may also be involved.
Etihad has canceled every flight linking Abu Dhabi with Dammam, Jeddah and Riyadh through November 5, citing regional disruption. Emirates lists cancellations in both directions between Dubai and Dammam and between Dubai and Riyadh. On the Jeddah route, EK801 and EK802 are canceled, while other Emirates services remain scheduled.
Air Arabia's cancellations affect flights to and from Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, including routes serving Bangladesh, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
Flights between the UAE and Iran operated by Iranian airlines remain suspended indefinitely. The suspension of Emirates and flydubai codeshare services to Tel Aviv also continues following the September 30 incident involving FZ1073, which diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
Saudi services and alternative airport arrangements
IndiGo's cancellations cover Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Madinah through November 14. Akasa Air's Jeddah suspension runs until November 18 and its Riyadh suspension until November 30. Riyadh Air has canceled some Riyadh flights through November 5.
Saudia and flyadeal are using Qassim Airport for Riyadh services, with bus transfers available between Riyadh and the airport.
In its October 30 report, Skift linked Saudi airline suspensions to a month of Houthi attacks on the kingdom's airports. It reported that an October 10 strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed 13 people. Citing Cirium, Skift said 86% of scheduled departures from Riyadh had been canceled since October 8.
Capacity gains alongside prolonged suspensions
UAE airports had 7.2 million scheduled departing seats in October, 23% more than in June. Gulf News reported that Dubai International accounted for 4.6 million seats, Abu Dhabi's Zayed International Airport for 1.7 million and Sharjah International Airport for 840,000. Emirates offered 3.1 million seats. Flydubai's capacity reached 1.1 million, a 27.5% increase since June.
The recovery remains below earlier expectations. According to Deep Arrival's account of a September 10 briefing, Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths put airport capacity at 84% of pre-crisis levels and passenger numbers at 78%. Dubai Airports projected about 70 million passengers for 2026, compared with an earlier target of nearly 100 million and 95.2 million guests in 2025.
Several carriers still have lengthy Dubai suspensions. Singapore Airlines flights SQ494 and SQ495 are suspended until February 28, 2027; Cathay Pacific's services until January 31; and KLM's until March 27. Korean Air has given no resumption date, while Luxair's return has been delayed until February 2027 at the earliest.
Skift reported on October 30 that at least 16 non-Gulf airlines were still absent from Dubai, with several delaying their return until the end of March 2027. It also reported signs of weaker forward demand: November booked nights at Dubai short-term rentals were down 36% from a year earlier, while UAE hotel occupancy in September fell 12.3 percentage points to 67.6%.
Confirm flight status before traveling
Passengers should check directly with their airline before leaving for the airport and allow extra time for airport procedures. Published flight statuses reflect the time they were checked and can change.
Some flydubai Saudi destinations have no status information available. A missing listing is not confirmation of a cancellation or suspension; passengers should check their booking or contact flydubai.
