Post by : Jyoti Gupta

Photo:Reutres

Several countries in the Gulf region, like Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain, and Kuwait, briefly closed their skies to flights after Iran launched missile attacks toward a U.S. military base in Qatar. This sudden move was taken as a safety measure, and it caused many flights to be delayed or rerouted away from busy airports like Doha and Dubai.

Qatar was the first to shut its airspace, preparing for the possible impact of the strikes. Other countries nearby quickly followed to avoid any risks. Because of this, dozens of flights had to change their routes or land somewhere else.

Qatar Airways was affected the most since it runs more than 80% of the flights in and out of Doha Airport. The airport took longer to reopen than others, but by Tuesday, flights had started again. The airline also brought in extra staff at the airport to help things get back to normal.

Emirates airline said that some of its planes had to take different flight paths on their way to Dubai but there were no full diversions. After checking the safety situation carefully, they decided to keep flying but away from any conflict zones.

This was the first time in almost two years of regional tension that air travel was seriously disrupted in these wealthy Gulf countries. Even though the situation was temporary, it showed how fast things can change when conflict comes close to such an important travel hub.

Gulf airspace closure