Civil aviation major SpiceJet will operate fourteen special flights from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday, March 6, to bring stranded Indians home as the conflict between Iran and the US–Israel alliance rages on.
While one of the SpiceJet aircraft will leave for Pune from Dubai, nine services will take Indian nationals to Mumbai from Fujairah. The remaining four aircraft will leave for Delhi from Fujairah. In the last three days, SpiceJet has operated 25 special flights from the UAE, connecting stranded passengers to Delhi, Mumbai, and Kochi.
Meanwhile, in the UAE, limited movement of civil aviation flights is permitted while the threat of Iranian ballistic missiles persists. The chance of air defence systems getting it wrong cannot be ruled out either, making air travel even riskier. However, airports across the UAE are allowing fliers with confirmed tickets entry as a limited number of international services resume.
For latest news and analyses on Middle East, visit: Yello! Middle East
On March 5, flight services partially resumed to Gulf countries after a four-day suspension when a flydubai aircraft from Dubai landed at Kolkata airport at 2:40 am with 130 passengers, marking the first arrival from West Asia. The same aircraft subsequently departed for Dubai on March 5 with 55 passengers.
ALSO READ:
- How many missiles, launchers have Iran still got? Israel says B-2 Bombers behind major fall in enemy salvos
- Will FIFA ban Iran if it boycott World Cup co-hosted by US? Here’s what is at stake for Mehdi Taremi’s team
- Are there flights from Dubai, other UAE airports today? 5 latest updates for international fliers
Earlier that day, seven international flights from Kolkata to Gulf countries were cancelled as a consequence of the ongoing conflict. Seven flights operating to and from Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport to Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi were cancelled due to the present situation in West Asia, an Airports Authority of India (AAI) statement said. The cancelled services include flights operated by Air Arabia, Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways, and Emirates, all of which connect Kolkata with the three major transit hubs in the Gulf region.
Qatar Airways will operate limited relief flights starting from Thursday for stranded passengers departing from Muscat and Riyadh, it said on X. Flights are planned from Muscat to Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen, London Heathrow, Madrid, and Rome, as well as from Riyadh to Frankfurt.