Dubai airport stays open as war-day flight cancellations

Dubai International Airport cancelled a string of services on Oct. 2, Day 217 of the US-Iran war, and the cancellations tell the story of UAE aviation better than any shutdown would: flydubai flights to Abha, Oman Air to Salalah, Jazeera Airways to Kuwait, Airblue to Karachi, SpiceJet to Amritsar and multiple flydubai services to Tel Aviv all dropped off the boards. The airports stayed open. The delivery of air services did not stay even.

Flydubai has suspended all flights to and from Israel until further notice, following the Sept. 30 cockpit incident on flight FZ1073 that forced a diversion from Dubai to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. Emirates has pulled its flydubai codeshare flights to and from Tel Aviv as well, and passengers whose final destination is Tel Aviv will not be accepted for travel at their point of origin.

The Tabuk diversion is now the subject of a formal investigation. UAE prosecutors, acting on an order from the Attorney General, are examining the mid-flight altercation that injured both pilots and forced the emergency landing. The Attorney General’s office said investigators will determine whether the incident was linked to terrorist activity, prior planning or direction. Saudi authorities initially reported that the first officer assaulted the captain, while online speculation pointed to a security incident; all passengers were later flown onward on a replacement aircraft. Officials stress the flight landed safely and the situation was brought under control, but the probe adds a layer of scrutiny to operations on routes linked to Israel and the wider conflict zone.

Meanwhile, at Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi, departures were operating but delayed, including Air Arabia services to Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram and Yerevan, and Etihad services to Kuwait. Iranian airlines remain barred from UAE airspace and airports under a suspension imposed in September following US sanctions on Iranian carriers, and flights involving Iranian carriers to regional destinations face restrictions elsewhere too.

One clear piece of new capacity did arrive. Philippine Airlines resumed nonstop Manila-Dubai flights on Oct. 2, starting with four weekly services on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and the carrier says it plans to progressively restore daily service, subject to operating conditions. The direct Philippine flag-carrier link returns after months of suspension, a change that matters for overseas Filipino workers.

The wider recovery is cautious and staggered. British Airways plans to resume Dubai flights on Nov. 3 with one daily service. Lufthansa plans to return on Munich-Dubai on Oct. 25 and Frankfurt-Dubai on Oct. 26. By contrast, Singapore Airlines, Air France and KLM have all extended their Dubai suspensions to Oct. 24, Cathay Pacific remains suspended until Jan. 31, 2027, Air Canada until March 2027, Finnair until March 27, 2027, and Korean Air until further notice.

Behind the airport boards, the machinery of the conflict keeps shaping what can be delivered and when. The Pentagon has awarded RTX’s Raytheon unit a $24.4 billion, five-year contract to accelerate production of Standard Missile-6 interceptors for the US Navy, replenishing munitions stockpiles depleted by the war and securing supply for both offensive strikes and missile defence. Washington is also sending an additional 9,000 sailors and Marines aboard a flotilla of warships, a buildup that could bring three aircraft carriers to the region, including the USS Theodore Roosevelt strike group and the USS Makin Island amphibious readiness group, joining the USS George H.W. Bush and USS George Washington already operating near Iran. Defense officials say the surge expands military options if diplomacy fails while reassuring Gulf partners as Houthi attacks and Iranian-backed militia activity persist.

Fuel logistics face similar pressure. The Trump administration has told Germany and France to draw down emergency diesel inventories, asking the EU to release roughly 120 million barrels over six months, more than 40% of the bloc’s current emergency gasoil and diesel stocks, and warning of a targeted ban on US diesel exports if allies refuse. European leaders were holding emergency talks in Brussels on Friday. Brent crude climbed above $102 a barrel this week, driven by the threat of renewed US strikes, Houthi attacks on shipping and possible bottlenecks around the Strait of Hormuz, though Hormuz flows from Arab Gulf states have rebounded to prewar levels under US military escorts, with about 40% of Gulf crude now bypassing the strait via pipelines to terminals in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, up from 17% before the war. Iran’s own crude exports have effectively halted under a US naval blockade, with no new cargoes loaded since mid-August.

On the ground, Saudi air defenses intercepted a Houthi-fired ballistic missile targeting Khamis Mushait with no casualties or major damage reported, part of a renewed wave of cross-border attacks. Loud explosions were heard late Thursday in Sanaa, with residents describing airstrikes on military sites in several neighborhoods. President Trump has rejected Iran’s latest ceasefire proposal as “not good enough,” telling TIME that renewed strikes remain “possible” once US weapons stockpiles are replenished, while fresh sanctions hit Iran’s automotive and rail sectors.

For UAE residents, the practical picture is services that function but stay fragile: expect delays, check schedules before travelling, and watch fuel prices, which could feed into travel, logistics and household costs in the coming weeks even as sustained high oil prices support government revenues. Whether the Philippine Airlines restart marks the start of a broader recovery, or an outlier amid suspensions stretching into 2027, will be visible on the departure boards soon enough.