Image credit: Getty Images
Dubai International Airport (DXB), one of the world’s busiest, said it was temporarily limiting the number of arriving flights for 48 hours from 12 pm on Friday to speed up recovery operations from rain and flooding that swept the UAE three days ago, reported Reuters.
This comes as over 12,000 flights have been cancelled since the torrential downpour, on April 16, that brought the city to a standstill.
In an update on the operations at the airport, Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports said, “We’ve still got many thousands of people desperate to reach their destination,” he told CNBC.
“The airport isn’t designed to cope with many, many thousands of people stuck on the concourses, so that is the thing we are trying to clear,” he added.
We’re endeavouring to do our best to support guests impacted by delays due to recent unprecedented weather conditions.
However, due to the ongoing disruption, and to speed up recovery, we are temporarily limiting the number of arriving flights from 12PM on 19 April for 48 hours.— DXB (@DXB) April 19, 2024
Additionally, the airport authority also notified passengers to not to come to the airport unless their flight has been confirmed and recommended arriving only two hours before their scheduled departure.
Emirates suspends some check-ins
Dubai flagship carrier Emirates, one of the world’s biggest international airlines, earlier said check-in was suspended for all customers with onward connections through the city until 23:59 hrs on Friday.
Those travelling to Dubai as their final destination may check-in and travel as usual.
Emirates is suspending check-in for all customers in our network with onward connections through Dubai until 23:59hrs GMT, 19 April (03:59hrs Dubai time, 20 April).
Customers with connections in Dubai will only be accepted at their point of origin if their flight departs after… pic.twitter.com/1FyKTWmaar
— Emirates Support (@EmiratesSupport) April 19, 2024
Read: Dubai’s Emirates halts check-in for connections after bad weather
flydubai revises schedule
flydubai adjusted its schedule for Friday, along with further flight cancellations, reported state news agency WAM.
Passengers were advised to check the status of their flight before they leave for the airport. “We are working hard to minimise any disruption to our passengers’ travel schedules and are coordinating with all parties at the airport. We apologise for the inconvenience caused by the operational challenges”, according to the company’s spokesperson.
The budget carrier also cancelled all flights heading to Tehran following the NOTAM issued to airlines.
“In line with the issued NOTAM (notice to air missions), our flights to Iran today have been canceled,” flydubai said in its statement.
One flight which had already departed for Tehran returned to Dubai after the Iranian capital’s airport was closed, it added.
Read: Flydubai cancels flights to Tehran
In its travel advisory for passengers, the air carrier said:
- Our operating flights continue to experience some delays
- Before setting off for the airport, please check the flight status on flydubai.com
- Passengers whose bookings have been cancelled will be contacted and will be offered a refund. To make a new booking passengers can go flydubai.com
- Passengers who have booked through a Travel Agent are advised to contact them directly for their refund or rebooking options
- Passengers with onward connections will not be accepted for travel at their point of origin until further notice
- Check in online before you leave for the airport
- Allow significant extra time for your journey to the airport and carefully plan your route
- The airport will be very busy so please aim to arrive early ahead of your flight
- As we expect your journey time and processing time at the airport to be longer than usual, we recommend packing a snack and a bottle of water as you may need it
Air India cancels flights
Air India has cancelled all flights to and from DXB.
The airline, operates 72 weekly flights from various cities in India to Dubai.
In its statement via Twitter it said cancellations were due to operational disruptions at the airport.
“We are doing our best to get affected customers on their way by re-accommodating them on flights as soon as operations resume,” the airline said.
Air India added that customers booked on our flights up until with valid tickets for travel up until April 21 will be offered “a one-time waiver on rescheduling and full refunds for cancellations”.
We regret to inform cancellation of our flights to and from Dubai due to continued operational disruptions at Dubai Airport. We are doing our best to get affected customers on their way by re-accommodating them on flights as soon as operations resume. Customers booked on our…
— Air India (@airindia) April 19, 2024
Etihad operations back to normal
Etihad Airways announced the resumption of scheduled operations following the disruptions due to the recent weather conditions.
The airline said that some flights experienced delays on April 16 and 17 due to the rainy weather conditions in Abu Dhabi.
Etihad Airways advised passengers to check their flight schedules on the airline’s website, noting that the safety of its guests and crew will remain its top priority.