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UAE lifts all air travel restrictions
Global carriers to ramp up services at DXB after weeks of limited operations
The UAE has lifted all air traffic restrictions following nearly 10 weeks of disruption linked to the Iran war, which began on 28 February 2026.
On 2 May, the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) confirmed the “full resumption of normal air navigation operations across UAE airspace”, marking the removal of all temporary restrictions.
Following the GCAA’s announcement, Dubai Airports confirmed on the morning of 4 May that it is “moving decisively to scale up operations, increasing flight movements in line with available regional routing capacity”.
The hub will now see a gradual increase in daily international flights as airlines progressively reinstate scheduled services. Capacity remains dependent on the availability of regional air corridors, with ongoing coordination across neighbouring airspace.
However, the situation remains dynamic, with multiple missile alerts issued in the country on the evening of 4 May, the first since the ceasefire on 8 April. According to the Ministry of Defence, UAE air defence systems responded to 12 ballistic missiles, three cruise missiles and four drones. No operational updates have been issued by aviation authorities following the alerts.
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Despite recent constraints, Dubai International remained fully operational, handling more than 6 million passengers and 32,000 aircraft movements between 28 February and 30 April 2026. However, passenger traffic fell 20.6% year-on-year in Q1 2026 to 18.6 million, as disruptions intensified through March.
Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths said: “Our response to these challenges has sharpened our ability to adapt, enabling us to accommodate returning demand as capacity is restored, even as regional routing constraints remain.”
The easing of restrictions is expected to support recovery, after foreign carriers were previously limited to one daily round-trip service until the end of May. India, DXB’s largest market in Q1 2026, was among the most affected and had raised concerns over capacity constraints.
As operations normalise, carriers including Air India Express are resuming services to the Gulf, reinstating flights across Qatar, Bahrain, the UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia.
International airlines remain central to DXB’s transfer network, which handles around 22.4 million passenger journeys annually, accounting for nearly one-third of regional hub traffic.
A broader regional recovery is under way following the reopening of GCC airspace, with Bahrain and Kuwait among the last to resume operations in April. National carriers in Kuwait are returning to home bases after temporarily operating from hubs in Saudi. Qatar Airways has also reinstated regional connectivity, including services to Dubai, Sharjah, Manama and Damascus.
Despite easing conditions, some international governments continue to maintain travel advisories for the UAE as of 4 May 2026, including the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, which “advises against all but essential travel to the United Arab Emirates”. No new travel advisories have been issued by other major UAE markets, including India and Russia, as of May 2026.
For more information, visit dubaiairports.ae
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