Abu Dhabi airport sees Etihad resume flights amid escalating Middle East conflict

3 minutes of readingUpdated: Mar 3, 2026 05:23 am IST

Amid escalating violence in the Middle East that forced several airports to close operations, Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport resumed operations on Monday.

Etihad flew flights that could only be boarded by a few passengers on a day when more missiles flew toward Tehran and Israel. Bloomberg quoted Timur Susarov, a representative of Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism, as saying that these were special flights that applied only to passengers with Etihad Airways tickets. Susarov reportedly said this in a video posted on Telegram.

Eight Etihad Airways flights took off on March 2, according to data from Flightradar24.

On Saturday, the United States and Israel launched major strikes across Iran, after which Iran responded with missiles targeting US bases in the Middle East region. Israel, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, among others, became targets of Iran’s retaliation.

Around the world, air transportation systems were affected following the conflict. Several airports were closed and thousands of travelers were stranded in airports and hotels.

What flights departed from Abu Dhabi airport?

Two flights to Mumbai and Delhi were among the eight flights that took off from Abu Dhabi airport on Monday. The Mumbai flight left at 3:35 pm and the Delhi flight at 3:55 pm.

8 passenger flights have been able to take off from Abu Dhabi since 2:00 p.m. local time. pic.twitter.com/4eYs3ReJaJ

— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) March 2, 2026

The first Etihad flight took off at 2:39 p.m. and headed to London. Followed by a 2:50 p.m. flight to Amsterdam.

An Etihad Airways flight took off at 3:02 p.m. to Paris and at 3:12 p.m. to Moscow. The Karachi flight left Abu Dhabi at 3:24 p.m. and the Islamabad flight at 3:45 p.m.

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Travel help for Muscat

SalamAir reportedly offers integrated bus transfers from Sharjah (SHJ) to Muscat (MCT). The shuttle bus connects Sharjah with emirate destinations such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Ajman. The bus schedule from Tuesday, March 3, 2026 to Thursday, March 5, 2026 is published on the Salam Air website. All passengers are advised to purchase tickets in advance and arrive at the stations at least 30 minutes before scheduled departure.

Those passengers who require an Oman visa must complete an application on the official website beforehand.

Flight cancellations reported in India

On Sunday, March 1, 2026, around 350 domestic airlines operated by India were canceled following airspace restrictions in the Middle East.

On Saturday, February 28, 2026, around 410 flights were canceled due to the situation in the Middle East.

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With the cancellations and panic that followed, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) issued an advisory to passengers to update themselves with their flight status and coordinate with airlines for required assistance.

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