Middle East crisis: Flights to UAE, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait to get longer

New Delhi: Air India announced that flights to the UAE, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait would take longer due to unrest in the Middle East. The rescheduling might also affect some services to Europe and North America. Besides Iran, Iraq and Israel, Air India wouldn’t use the airspace of some parts of the Persian Gulf as a safety precaution. The airline stated that it would look for alternative routes, which would make the flights longer. Besides, the ticket fares might also be hiked due to increased fuel prices.

The company also said that they have been discussing the current crisis in the region with their safety advisors and promised to take extra precautionary measures if the situation worsens. Air India had cancelled the Delhi–Frankfurt and Delhi–Zurich services yesterday due to the severe air traffic restrictions in South Asia. The delayed or prolonged flights would exceed the duty duration of the pilots, forcing the airline to cancel these services. Meanwhile, Air India flight from Birmingham to Delhi was diverted to Riyadh in Saudi Arabia after receiving a bomb threat mid-air. However, explosive materials weren’t found after the security personnel did a full sweep of the plane. Air India arranged another aircraft for the passengers stranded at Riyadh.