MBABANE: Dubai International Airport announced this week that it had suspended flights after an alleged Iran drone hit a nearby fuel tank, SkyNews reported.
As a result, many Emirates flights already in the air were diverted, while others waiting to take off were cancelled.
Five flights from UK airports had to return to their points of origin, including a journey from Edinburgh which had made it as far Egyptian airspace before turning back, an Emirates Spokesperson said some of the flights were grounded due to operational disruption.
“We can confirm the flight [EK24] returned to Edinburgh due to operational disruption,” said the Emirates Spokesperson as quoted by Sky News.
Other passengers on board a flight from London Stansted almost made it to Dubai, but were instead diverted to Vienna, Austria.
The closure of the major United Arab Emirates hub also impacts thousands hoping to finally return to the UK after being stranded in the Middle East, or other airports where UK flights connect in the region, since the US and Israel launched its war on Iran,” reads the SkyNews report in part.
Fly Emirates (pic:Emirates).