Thousands of Flights Canceled, Hundreds of Thousands of Tourists Stranded in the Middle East

Dubai — Hundreds of thousands of travellers are reported stranded in the Middle East after thousands of flights were cancelled as fighting widens in the region following attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran on 28 February.

Air travel disruptions have sparked chaos at major Gulf airports. Several Western countries are expanding evacuation efforts to repatriate their citizens from the affected area. The European Commission said at least six EU-supported repatriation flights had departed since Wednesday (4 March 2026). The flights have repatriated Europeans to several countries, including Bulgaria, Italy, Austria, and Slovakia. The Commission said further evacuation flights were planned in the coming days. Meanwhile, the United States Department of State also announced it would increase the number of evacuation flights from the Middle East region. Officials said more than 17,500 American citizens had returned to the United States since 28 February.

Evacuation flights departed from regional hubs, including Dubai and Jeddah. Other European countries such as France, Germany and the Czech Republic have also arranged special flights to evacuate their citizens from the region. The UK government said the first evacuation charter flight from Muscat, the capital of Oman, was delayed due to technical issues. However, the aircraft was expected to depart soon. The British foreign secretary said more than 300,000 British nationals were living or en route in Gulf states.

“More than 11,000 flights scheduled to depart from major airports in 10 countries have been cancelled since the United States and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February,” Saudigazette quoted data from Flightradar24 on Saturday (7 March 2026).