Thousands on UK flights hit by latest Dubai airport shutdown after drone strike

WorldTravel
16 Mar 2026 • 7:59 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

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  • Dubai International Airport suspended flights on Monday after a drone strike hit a nearby fuel tank, significantly disrupting thousands of British travellers.
  • Numerous Emirates flights were either diverted or cancelled, including five flights from UK airports that were forced to return to their points of origin.
  • A flight from London Stansted was diverted to Vienna, and all seven Emirates flights scheduled from Dubai to London Heathrow on Monday were cancelled.
  • The flight suspension also impacted passengers who had been stranded in the Middle East, or other regions connecting via Dubai, since the start of the US-Israeli campaign against Iran.
  • Flights at Dubai International Airport gradually resumed to selected destinations later on Monday, following earlier heavy restrictions that had been in place since late February.