GCC air travel recovery accelerates in late March

Over the past month, GCC air travel has faced major disruption due to the ongoing US-Israel-Iran conflict, but local airlines are gradually resuming operations and increasing flights.

Among the UAE carriers, Emirates is making the strongest comeback, averaging around 350 flights a day in late March, according to Flightradar24. Meanwhile, Air Arabia and Flydubai are operating 100 to 120 flights daily, with Etihad now approaching 200. 

Despite Qatar reopening its airspace later than the UAE, its flag carrier, Qatar Airways, is also steadily increasing operations, surpassing 100 flights a day since 18 March. 

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These figures mark a significant recovery from the initial days of the conflict, with Emirates operating just 24 flights on 1 March. However, Emirates and Qatar Airways are still operating below their pre-war averages of more than 500 daily flights.  

Currently, the GCC’s three leading airlines – Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar Airways – are operating to around 80 to 90 destinations worldwide, but some cancellations and delays still persist, including a recent wave of disruptions due to unstable weather in the region.