Flight to and from Dubai to operate at Birmingham Airport today - for the first time since Friday
A flight heading to Dubai from Birmingham Airport will operate today, as well as one arriving from the popular Middle East destination.
Emirates is running a limited number of Dubai flights to and from the UK despite the partial closure of the UAE's airspace. Today (Wednesday 4 March) a flight from Dubai will land at Birmingham Airport, and a flight to Dubai will depart from the West Midlands site.
It will be the first of such flights at Birmingham Airport since Friday (27 February). Flights to the likes of Dubai and Doha at Birmingham Airport have been cancelled for days due to conflict in the Middle East.
Iran’s war with the US and Israel has entered its fifth day with more explosions reported in Iran's capital this morning. Thousands of flights have been cancelled leaving thousands of Brits stranded across the Middle East.
Today airlines are beginning to ramp up their flights from the region which will be a relief to those holidaymakers who are desperately trying to get home. Emirates is operating seven flights from Dubai to the UK while Etihad has two Abu Dhabi departures. Overall, Emirates says 45 flights are heading out of Dubai today.
Virgin Atlantic will operate a flight from Dubai to London Heathrow. British Airways has not restarted its usual flying programme from the region, but will run an evacuation flight to Heathrow from Oman capital Muscat, which it does not usually serve.
At Birmingham Airport today a flight from Dubai is scheduled to land at around 12:30pm. A flight heading to Dubai from the airport is also scheduled to depart at 13:40pm.
Birmingham Airport confirmed to the Express and Star that both of these flights are commercial so they will be carrying holidaymakers.
Despite a limited number of flights beginning to operate, many will still be cancelled due to airspace closures in the Middle East region. Figures from aviation analytics company Cirium show 603 out of 1,040 flights to Dubai were cancelled on Wednesday, meaning a similar number of flights out of the city have also been axed.
Passengers are still advised to enquire with their airline regarding the status of their flight. Dubai Airport warns: "Travellers are advised not to proceed to DXB or DWC unless they have been contacted directly by their airline with a confirmed departure time, as schedules remain subject to change.Passengers should continue to contact their airline for the latest updates regarding flight status and timings."
