Update: Dubai Flights Disrupted After Drones Injure Four Near Main Airport
Dubai International Airport briefly halted operations on Wednesday after drones smashed down at the facility, resulting in four injuries at the world’s busiest international hub.
Dubai’s media office said that two drones fell in the vicinity of the airport, resulting in minor injuries to two Ghanaian nationals and one Bangladeshi national, and moderate injuries to one Indian national, according to a social media post. Air traffic is operating as normal, it added.
Emirates aircraft coming into Dubai on Wednesday morning were in a holding pattern as they awaited permission to land, according to data from Flightradar24. Takeoffs were also briefly paused, the service showed.
The world’s largest international carrier, Emirates is operating a reduced flight schedule to about 100 destinations in more than 50 countries. That’s significantly lower than the number of destinations the airline typically serves, and the frequency of flights remains restricted.
Emirates has said it will be able to resume full operations in coming days. At the same time, aircraft have been forced into longer approaches as the military intercepts missiles and drones. on at least four different occasions over the past week, airliners have had to circle near Dubai as missile alerts rang around the city.
Bahrain repositioned aircraft for its national carrier Gulf Air and several cargo companies out of the country as the Gulf nation continues to face threats from Iran. Some 17 aircraft were taken out of the country, including nine Gulf air jets, seven DHL freighters and one Air India Express plane, according to data from Flightradar24.
The country successfully transfered the aircrafts from Bahrain International Airport to alternative hubs and “this measure is designed to enhance fleet operational readiness and ensure the continuity and efficiency of air operations during the current circumstances,”said the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications in a statement.
Mass repositioning flights from Bahrain at the moment. https://t.co/ZtccOJ2BAe
pic.twitter.com/eePeL674hZ
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) March 10, 2026
In the Persian Gulf, air travel remains heavily disrupted. Kuwait and Bahrain airspace remain closed, while Qatar has only been able to operate a small fraction of its usual flights.
Airports across the region have also been under attack. Abu Dhabi Airport said that one person died and several were injured last week after the emirate intercepted an Iranian drone. Dubai’s main airport reported damage to a concourse that injured four staff members on March 1. Airports in Kuwait and Bahrain were also targeted in the war.
As a result, carriers in the region are trying to move more of their planes out of harm’s way, or keep them in far-flung airports where they’ve been parked since hostilities started over a week ago. Besides concerns of physical damage, any aircraft parked in a country that has been targeted will have to pay a war premium on the insurance for the asset.
The repositioning of the fleet were taken to “ensure the continuity of air operations in full compliance with the highest standards of safety and security,” the ministry said.
Since the war started 12 days ago, Bahrain has sustained damages to infrastructure including the country’s main airport and a water desalination site. Bahrain’s main energy company, which operates the island nation’s only oil refinery, declared force majeure on operations that have been impacted by the ongoing war.
Photograph: A Gulf Air aircraft; photo credit: Andrej Isakovic/Getty Images
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