Indian airlines cancels 278 flights; 96 Middle East flights operate on Friday

Domestic airlines are scheduled to operate 96 flights to and from the Middle East on Friday while the carriers have cancelled 278 international services for the day the government said on Friday amid the conflict in the regionThe situation in the Middle East has disrupted flight operations as there are restrictions as well as closure of airspaces Some airlines have commenced limited operations to and from the region where the conflict involving the US Israel and Iran has escalated in the last few daysThe civil aviation ministry on Friday said due to the ongoing developments in West Asia and the resulting airspace restrictions flight operations have been impacted across several sectorsA total of 96 flight operations were scheduled today by Indian domestic carriers to and from destinations in the Middle East As of 6 March 278 flights scheduled to be operated today by Indian domestic carriers have been cancelled it said in a statementIn another statement later the ministry said 51 flights are planned to be operated by domestic airlines subject to operational feasibility and prevailing conditionsPassenger movement data for 5th March 2026 shows that a total of 40 inbound flights operated by Indian carriers arrived in India from the West Asia region carrying 7205 passengers taking the cumulative passenger arrivals to 14992 the statement saidEarlier in the day officials said more than 140 international flights were cancelled in Mumbai Delhi Bangalore and Kolkata airports on Friday due to the Middle East crisisThey said at least 142 flights were cancelled at the four airports with 39 departures and 34 arrivals cancelled at the Mumbai airportWhile the total flight cancellations at the Bangalore airport were 33 including 15 departures and 18 arrivals at the Delhi airport 15 departures and 14 arrivals were cancelledA total of seven flights four departures and three arrivals have been cancelled at the Kolkata airport according to the officialsAkasa Air said it would operate the MumbaiJeddahMumbai flight on FridayThe airline on Saturday would operate flights from Mumbai Ahmedabad and Kochi to Jeddah it said in a post on XSpiceJet said it will operate 14 special flights from the UAE to bring back stranded passengersA source said Air India Express will operate 43 flights to Dubai Abu Dhabi Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah UAE Muscat Oman and Jeddah Saudi Arabia on Saturday These include scheduled as well as nonscheduled flightsFrom the UAE cities the airline will have services to Delhi Mumbai Kochi and Bangalore the source saidAir India groups scheduled operations to and from other points in West Asia have been suspended until March 10 due to the continuing airspace closures over multiple other countries in the West AsiaMeanwhile the ministry has advised passengers to keep a close watch on the latest flight updates and remain attentive to communication shared by their respective airlines through registered contact detailsThe Passenger Assistance Control Room PACR at the ministry is coordinating with airlines and other stakeholders to address issuesSo far 1881 passenger grievances have been addressed through AirSewa social media platforms and helpline calls the ministry said in the statementThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever