Last updated on Thursday 12 March at 10.00 am
How to get out of the throes of war in the Middle East? The launch of US and Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February and the Iranian retaliation that followed led to more than 20,000 flights being cancelled in the first few days, according to Cirium, leaving residents and tourists trapped in the turmoil of global geopolitics.
The Quai d'Orsay put the number of French nationals living in or passing through the dozen or so countries in the region affected by the conflict at nearly 400,000, while the British authorities put the number of Britons in the Gulf at 141,000, including 112,000 in the United Arab Emirates, and the BBC put the number of Americans at between 500,000 and 1 million. And all the governments of these countries, as well as Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic and India, with nearly 8.5 million Indians living in the Gulf, took it in turns to organise repatriation flights to come to their aid.
The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that it had facilitated the return to France of 900 nationals and estimated that 7,500 requests for assistance had been received. In addition to military aircraft, the French government also chartered flights from Air France to help them. " Four flights have departed from Egypt, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Three others are scheduled and are in the process of being chartered. "declared Jean-Noël Barrot on 5 March, almost at the same time as one of these flights, which had left Paris for Dubai after a stopover in Cairo, was forced to turn back". due to missile fire in the area "said Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot on X.
With the continuing exchanges of missiles and drones and the closure of airspace, the situation is indeed complicated. European airlines have stopped serving most of the region's airports, at least until around 15 March in the case of Air France, and even later in the case of KLM, which has suspended services to Tel Aviv until the end of the winter season on 29 March.
So what exit routes are available to residents and stranded travellers? While it is possible to reach Amman by road from Israel, only Royal Jordanian is operating normally, as most of the European airlines used to serve the Jordanian airport - those of the Lufthansa group, but also Ryanair, Wizzair and Turkish Airlines - have suspended their operations until further notice.
In the United Arab Emirates, Muscat airport in Oman has become the hub of operations to facilitate departures from Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Just a few hours' drive from the two metropolises, the Omani capital has seen a number of special flights chartered by European countries since the start of the crisis. But it was the commercial flights offered by Oman Air that saw the greatest demand. As a result, with the cancellation of its flights to most destinations in the region, Oman Air is repositioning its aircraft to operate its network of routes to Europe, South-East Asia and Africa as normal. In addition, in response to strong demand, Oman Air will be adding flights to Paris, Milan, Rome, Munich, Amsterdam, London, Istanbul, Cairo and Bangkok until 15 March.
Soaring ticket prices
Of course, even in times of crisis, the law of supply and demand is in full play. In a reversal of the trend for grounded aircraft, ticket prices have soared, according to an article inAl Jazeera on 6 March reported that passengers had been offered tickets at over $5,000 one-way to the UK, with private jet hire negotiated at between $100,000 and $200,000. While Middle Eastern airlines have established themselves as hubs for tourists and business travellers between Europe and Asia, these disruptions are having a snowball effect on fares from Singapore, Hong Kong or Bangkok in Asia. The absence of connecting flights in Dubai or Doha means that Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific or Thai Airways flights are being switched.
For its part, Air France is increasing its offer by positioning larger capacity aircraft on its flights from Bangkok, Singapore, Dehli, Mumbai, Shanghai, Tokyo and Phuket since 4 March. At the same time, Air France is also offering additional flights on departure from Bangkok, Singapore and Delhi.
How do I get back from Dubai?
However, these initiatives will only imperfectly compensate for the suspension of transit flights through Emirates airports. The resumption of flights from Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha is, in fact, the only large-scale way out for the vast majority of residents and travellers passing through the Gulf.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports have reopened, but business is far from normal. Etihad, which had cancelled its flights to and from Abu Dhabi until the morning of 6 March, is gradually resuming them, serving several key destinations between 6 and 19 March. Paris CDG is linked to the emirate with one flight on 12 and 14 March and two flights on 13 and 15 March. The Abu Dhabi airline will also be offering two daily flights to London from 12 to 15 March, as well as daily services to Frankfurt, Dublin, Cairo and numerous Indian and South-East Asian cities.
For its part, Emirates intends to gradually return to its usual route network since 7 March, with 106 daily return flights to 83 destinations on that day. However, the airline expects its network to return to 100 %s in the next few days. subject to airspace availability and compliance with all operational requirements ". All the major cities are covered by the new flight programme, including Paris CDG and Nice, with Lyon not yet included.
In Doha, while Qatar Airways' scheduled flights remain suspended, the airline has received authorisation from the Civil Aviation Authority, confirming the safety of the air corridor, to resume a limited flight programme. Qatar Airways planned to operate flights to Frankfurt, Madrid and London on 12 March. Between 13 and 16 March, the airline will offer flights to Paris CDG on 13 and 15 March and to London Heathrow every day. Amsterdam will also be served during this period, as will Milan, Rome, Madrid and Frankfurt, in addition to other major destinations around the world. In the meantime, stranded travellers can take comfort in rereading La Fontaine: " Patience and time are more important than strength and rage ".
