Virgin Atlantic suspends Middle East flights after ‘extensive safety assessments’

Virgin Atlantic has ended its winter season Dubai service early after cancelling six flights between Friday and today (Monday).

 

The airline has also suspended a route between London and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia for two weeks due to the ongoing Iran crisis.

 

The suspensions followed “extensive safety and operational assessments” following airport and airspace closures in Dubai and Riyadh on Saturday.

 

Virgin Atlantic said: “We have strict criteria that must be met for a flight to continue into any region, and our criteria for proceeding to Dubai and Riyadh were not met.

 

“As a result, we took the decision to cancel a number of our London Heathrow, Dubai and Riyadh rotations, and safely divert affected services.”

 

The Middle East network changes came as Qatar Airways confirmed a continuation of repatriation flights to and from Doha to a limited number of destinations including Heathrow today, tomorrow and Wednesday.

 

The carrier gained temporary authorisation from the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority for limited operating corridors “to support passengers who have been affected due to the current disruption, and in helping them reunite with family and friends as quickly and safely as possible”.

 

However, the airline noted: “These flights do not constitute a confirmation of resumption of scheduled commercial operations.”

 

Emirates continues to operate a reduced flight schedule from Dubai following the partial re-opening of regional airspace on Saturday.  

 

Etihad Airways did the same from Abu Dhabi saying 70 destinations, including Heathow, Manchester and Dublin, were scheduled to be included beween March 6 and March 19.

 

“All other scheduled commercial services to and from Abu Dhabi remain suspended. Additional destinations will be added and communicated as conditions permit,” the airline said.  

 

A Foreign Office portal has been opened for British nationals to tell the UK government if they are interested in UK government charter flights from United Arab Emirates.

 

British Airways has scheduled further flights from Muscat to Heathrow departing today and March 10, 11 and 12.

 

Oman Air said additional flights had been added to its network although connections throughout the Gulf region have been cancelled until March 15.

 

Saudia partially resumed flights to Dubai but extended the suspension of services to Amman, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Bahrain until March 10.

     

Gulf Air flights from Bahrain remain suspended due to the closure of the country’s airspace.

 

UK holidaymakers were among 550 flown back by Tui over the weekend on repatriation flights to Frankfurt and Hanover.

 

 

Meanwhile, a gradual operation of outboard flights from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv was due to start yesterday by El Al, Israir, Arkia and Air Haifa, according to the Foreign Office.

 

Concerns are now being raised over the impact of rising oil prices on the industry as the benchmark rate passed $100 a barrel for the first time since 2022.  

 

Virgin Atlantic said: “Our Dubai service is suspended for the remainder of the winter season.

 

“Dubai is a seasonal route for Virgin Atlantic and was due to conclude on 28 March; however, the recent escalation in the Middle East has brought forward the end of our operation for this season.

 

“Flying to Riyadh is paused for the next two weeks and will continue to be assessed on an ongoing basis in line with the latest safety guidance.

 

“While our own services are suspended, our commitment to our customers remains unchanged. Our teams are actively working to support those who still need to travel, including exploring and securing alternative arrangements with other airlines wherever possible.

 

“Our focus is on ensuring customers are able to return home safely, reliably and with the least possible additional disruption.

 

“We continue to monitor the situation in the Middle East with ongoing dynamic assessments and active changes to our flight routings based on the latest information and guidance, where required.”

 

More than 65,500 flights were scheduled in and out of the Middle East and 37,000 cancelled between the start of the conflict on February 28 and March 8, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.