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Oman News

Oman remains most stable air corridor as regional strikes affect Middle East aviation

While a massive wave of strikes involving the United States, Israel, and Iran has effectively paralysed Middle Eastern aviation, Oman has emerged as the region's most resilient travel corridor.

TAS News Service

info@thearabianstories.com

Sunday, March 1, 2026

MUSCAT – As of March 1, 2026, aviation analytics firm Cirium reports that Oman was the least affected by the chaos, with only 7.81 percent of scheduled flights cancelled, compared to major hubs like Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi.

The conflict, which escalated following precision strikes on Tehran on February 28, has forced a total shutdown of major international hubs. Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest hub, was forced to close after sustaining damage during the exchange of fire.

Current flight maps show a ‘ghost sky’ over Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel, and Bahrain. Official data reveals a devastating impact on Saturday and Sunday’s schedules:

  • Bahrain: 57.58 percent of flights cancelled
  • Qatar: 38.25 percent of flights cancelled
  • Iraq: 38.79 percent of flights cancelled
  • UAE: 32.23 percent of flights cancelled

Airlines across Europe and the Middle East have announced sweeping cancellations, with some enroute flights diverted to alternate airports such as Larnaca, Jeddah, Cairo, and Riyadh. Eric Schouten, head of aviation security advisory Dyami, warned, “Passengers and airlines can expect airspace to be shut for quite some time.”

The disruption has left an estimated 1,800 flights cancelled across the region. At Hamad International Airport in Doha and Charles de Gaulle in Paris, travelers reported being stranded as connecting flights to Asia and the Americas were disrupted.

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