Flights to Dubai Canceled Until April, Agency Traffic Will Significantly Decrease

The attack by the USA and Israel on Iran last weekend halted travel across the Middle East, and commercial air traffic has been suspended in much of the region. In Dubai, the world’s busiest international airport hub, both airports have been closed for the sixth consecutive day. This is the largest disruption to air traffic since the COVID-19 pandemic, and thousands of passengers are still awaiting their return home.

Travel agencies have also begun canceling trips to Dubai and other nearby destinations until the end of March, but the situation for April travel remains uncertain. Despite the ongoing uncertainties and war, flights after April 1 are still formally operational, and without confirmation from airlines about cancellations, travel agencies cannot independently terminate arrangements.

On the other hand, numerous passengers are canceling their booked trips to the Middle East through agencies due to justified fears.

Agency Traffic Will Significantly Decrease

Mondo Travel, one of the domestic agencies, has recently informed travelers that all passengers who were on trips have safely returned home, but they are also canceling all departures to Dubai until the end of March, with a full refund.

However, for other departures, the situation is not so straightforward. ‘For other departures, we do not have approval from airlines as the flights are operational, and until we receive confirmation from the airline about the cancellation, we cannot take any action on our own,’ states Mondo Travel’s message to passengers.

In response to our inquiry about how they are handling the situation where airlines still consider flights from April 1 as operational, the agency says they are currently acting according to the current instructions.

– We live day by day, monitor the situation and the instructions from airlines, and act accordingly. It is unlikely that travel to Middle Eastern countries will proceed at the beginning of April, but we must wait a few more days while the flights are operational – they say at Mondo Travel.

However, besides concerns for future travel, problems arise with other important hubs for further travel from Europe to Asia. Istanbul lacks the capacity to take over all traffic from Dubai and Doha.

– The situation does not seem good at all, and we fear it will leave a mark not only on Middle Eastern countries but also on long-distance travel as the largest hubs for distant destinations are Doha and Dubai. Istanbul cannot take over all passenger traffic. We fear that the overall traffic of travel agencies will significantly decrease and that there is an extremely high financial risk for our business – emphasized Mondo Travel.

In the meantime, they respond daily to inquiries from concerned travelers and offer alternative solutions.

– We strive to be there for all our passengers, responding to numerous emails and phone calls, offering them alternative trips to some calmer destinations, and refunding money without any delays for all trips that clearly cannot proceed – they add at Mondo.

Uncertain Future Travel

Tomislav Fain, the president of the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies (UHPA), confirms that agencies are in constant contact with airlines, service providers, hotels, and partner agencies on the ground, but the consequences of this crisis are currently difficult to assess.

– Given that the situation is changing hour by hour, we do not yet have enough reliable information to assess the short-term or medium-term impact of this situation on the operations of travel agencies. However, it is certain that this state, considering that extremely important air corridors are affected, will greatly impact tourist movements and traffic in the upcoming period, far beyond the region itself – stated Fain.

He also noted that uncertainty is already reflecting on future travel and advises travelers to stay in contact with their agency. He also reminded of the support from the Government of Croatia, which has ensured repatriation flights that will return Croatian citizens to Croatia in the coming days.

On Wednesday, numerous countries began sending repatriation flights for their citizens, and on Thursday around 5:30 PM, a Croatia Airlines plane departed from Dubai to Zagreb, along with two charter flights from local airlines, enabling the return of nearly 500 Croatian citizens, announced the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.

Charter flights from Dubai to Zagreb are also scheduled for today, with a capacity of 340 seats, and the MVEP added that some Croatian citizens have already returned from Oman, Jordan, and Israel in the meantime.

– At this moment, the absolute priority of Croatian travel agencies is the care of their passengers who are currently in the Middle East, but also around the world, for whom the return is currently difficult or impossible – said Fain.

However, as long as airlines do not announce the cancellation of flights after March, passengers who have booked trips to the Middle East in the upcoming period remain in an uncertain situation. On the other hand, agencies that are connected to airlines through long-term contracts can only monitor the situation and inform passengers of all updates.