Planes parked at Terminal 3 of the Dubai International Airport, following the United States and Israel strikes on Iran, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on March 2, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
Dubai International Airport and Emirates said on Monday evening (March 2, 2026) that a limited resumption of flights will begin today, while Abu Dhabi’s Etihad will also operate a restricted number of repatriation and cargo services – an early sign of easing of flight restrictions after two days of near standstill.
From India, Air India Express will be the first Indian carrier to resume flights to Muscat.
“Emirates will begin operating a limited number of flights commencing on the evening of 2 March. We are accommodating customers with earlier bookings as a priority, and those who have been rebooked to travel on these limited flights will be contacted directly by Emirates,” Emirates airline said in a press statement on X. Its low-cost arm, flyDubai, will also restart flights.
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The two airports in Dubai will also reopen partially. Dubai Airports said in a press statement that “a limited resumption of operations will begin today evening, 2 March, with a small number of flights permitted to operate from Dubai International (DXB) and Dubai World Central – Al Maktoum International (DWC).”
Abu Dhabi-based Etihad said that it may restart repatriation, cargo and repositioning flights “in coordination with UAE authorities and subject to strict operational and safety approval”. However, all scheduled commercial flights to and from Abu Dhabi remain cancelled.
“Air India Express will resume flight operations to and from Muscat starting Tuesday, March 3, with scheduled services to Delhi, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangaluru, Mumbai and Tiruchirappalli,” it said in a press statement.
The first Air India Express flight from Muscat will operate to Tiruchirappally, departing at 10:25 hours local time.
Its flight operations to Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE remain suspended until 23:59 hrs IST on March 3, 2026.
While its West Asia flights remain suspended as of now, Air India resumed most of its European services and all flights to the United States and Canada from Monday (March 2), rerouting the majority through Oman, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, and additionally introducing a fuel stop on two U.S. routes at Rome.
Air India on Monday (March 2) reinstated most of the 48 return flights to North America and Europe that it had cancelled a day earlier, except the Amritsar–Birmingham, Delhi–Zurich and Delhi–Copenhagen routes.
“All other flights to North America and Europe will operate per schedule using alternative routings over available airspaces in the Middle East, which is expected to add to the flying times,” Air India said in a post on X. Its flights to Newark and New York from Delhi and Mumbai will now also make a fuel stop at Rome, resulting in a longer flight.
The airline has already been compelled to reroute several North America–bound services via Vienna following the closure of Pakistan’s airspace since April 2025. These include flights from Delhi to Chicago, Toronto and Washington. Its San Francisco services from Mumbai and Bengaluru are also operating with a technical fuel stop at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport.
Published – March 02, 2026 08:24 pm IST
