Dubai Restarts Limited Flights After Drone Strike Near Fuel Tank

DUBAI — Dubai International Airport (DXB) began limited operations on Monday, March 16, following a drone strike near the airport that damaged a fuel tank and caused a fire, resulting in a temporary suspension of flights earlier that day.

Flights resumed on a limited basis from 10:00 a.m. local time, though disruptions persisted. Some inbound flights were diverted to Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC), and road access around DXB was temporarily restricted as authorities responded.

Dubai Civil Defence confirmed the fire was contained, and authorities reported no injuries from the attack. Airlines advised passengers to travel to the airport only if they had a confirmed booking and had been contacted directly by their carrier.

Cancellations data from Cirium

According to Cirium, the disruption at DXB occurred during another challenging day for Middle East aviation. As of 5:30 p.m. DXB time on March 16, there were 2,544 scheduled departures across the Middle East, excluding Türkiye, with 604 canceled or classified as no-fly, representing 23.74% of departures.

On March 16, Gulf Air (GF) canceled all 108 scheduled departures, while Kuwait Airways (KU) canceled 56 of 57 flights, or 98.25%. Emirates (EK), DXB’s largest operator, canceled 78 of 167 flights (46.71%), and Flydubai (FZ) canceled 48 of 86 departures (55.81%). IndiGo (6E) canceled 42 of 75 flights, and El Al (LY) canceled 36 of 85.

Cirium’s data highlights the ongoing disruption since February 28. Across the Middle East, excluding Türkiye and counting outbound flights only, airlines have canceled or not operated 28,990 of 57,223 scheduled departures, or 50.66%.

Since February 28, Emirates has canceled 1,714 of 3,287 scheduled flights (52.14%). Qatar Airways (QR) has canceled 2,664 of 2,895 flights (92.02%), and Etihad Airways (EY) has canceled 1,395 of 1,832 departures (76.15%). Flydubai has canceled 763 of 1,394 flights, and Gulf Air 538 of 553.

The March 16 disruption marked an improvement over previous days. Regional departure cancellations were 31.26% on March 15, 39.27% on March 14, and above 45% each day from March 8 to March 12, according to Cirium.

The attack near DXB is the latest disruption to Gulf aviation as regional tensions continue to affect schedules, cause diversions, and limit capacity. Travelers should check directly with airlines for the latest operational updates.