ISLAMABAD – As skies over Middle East fell silent and airports from Dubai to Doha began shutting their gates, Pakistan International Airlines made changes to its routes, but still pointed toward Saudi Arabia.
A sudden eruption of conflict in Middle East triggered sweeping aviation chaos. Amid the chaos, Pakistani national carrier announced stoppingn operations to the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait atfer US and Israeli strikes on Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory missile barrage.
The suspension will remain in place until Sunday evening, or until regional airspace is declared safe, whichever comes later.
Flights to Saudi Arabia, however, will continue but not without major changes. PIA rerouted services to avoid restricted air corridors and upgraded aircraft to Boeing 777 jets capable of handling the extended flight paths. Passengers have been urged to contact the airline’s helpline at 111-786-786 for urgent updates and rebooking options.
Meanwhile, In Dubai, authorities ordered sweeping suspension of all flights until further notice. Emirates and Flydubai halted operations almost immediately. In Abu Dhabi, Etihad Airways froze departures and cancelled incoming flights until Sunday morning, stranding thousands.
Skies over several Gulf nations includig Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan were empty. British Airways cancelled flights to Tel Aviv and Bahrain through March 3. Lufthansa suspended Dubai operations for the weekend and halted routes to Tel Aviv, Beirut, and Oman until March 7. Air France scrapped flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut, and Dubai. ITA Airways not only cancelled its Tel Aviv route but vowed to avoid the airspace of Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, and Lebanon until March 7. Wizz Air grounded flights to Israel, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Amman for the same period.
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