British Airways has resumed flights between London Heathrow and Dubai after an eight-month suspension, with the first service arriving in the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday 4 November.
Flight BA105 left Heathrow at 8.08pm on Tuesday and reached Dubai International Airport at 7.33am local time the following morning. The aircraft then departed Dubai as BA104 at 9.45am on Wednesday, restoring a direct connection that had been paused amid the conflict in the Middle East.
The airline is initially operating one daily flight in each direction during the winter season. It plans to increase the service to twice daily in summer 2027, although future schedules can change.
A phased return
The Dubai route was suspended after conflict broke out at the end of February and regional airspace became unstable. British Airways had previously planned to resume the service on 25 October, before pushing the restart back to 3 November.
In March, the airline said uncertainty and airspace instability had led it to reduce its regional schedule. It also described operating eight relief flights from Muscat in Oman and adding capacity on routes to Singapore and Bangkok to help affected customers.
The return to Dubai does not mean that all the airline’s services in the region have resumed. Flights to Abu Dhabi remain suspended, with a restart not expected until the winter 2027–28 season. Doha services resumed in September at a reduced frequency, while the airline had scheduled a four-times-weekly service to Amman to restart on 4 November. A planned restart is not confirmation that every scheduled flight has operated.
Other routes remain on hold
Other airlines have made different decisions about their Dubai services. Singapore Airlines says its flights between Singapore and Dubai are cancelled until 28 February 2027. KLM says it will not operate its Amsterdam–Dubai service during the winter season, up to and including 27 March 2027.
The Lufthansa Group has postponed its planned Dubai resumption until 25 November. Its published schedule includes services from Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich and Berlin, while Austrian Airlines plans to restart its Vienna route on 12 December. Those dates are plans rather than guarantees, and the group has warned that short-notice changes remain possible.
Advice for passengers
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency continues to advise operators against flying over specified waters of the Persian Gulf, except where necessary for arrivals at or departures from airports in the affected flight information regions. It says such airport operations can be conducted with sufficient mitigation, based on an up-to-date risk assessment and continuous monitoring.
The agency also advises caution over land in the affected regions and identifies risks including missile and drone activity, air-defence operations and falling debris. The advisory is valid until 16 November unless reviewed earlier. It is directed at operators subject to European aviation rules and certain authorised non-European operators on services to, from or within the EU.
The UK Foreign Office says the regional situation remains unpredictable and advises British nationals to be prepared for possible flight cancellations, periodic airspace closures and travel disruption. It recommends following local authorities’ advice and keeping departure plans under review.
Passengers should check the status of their own flight with their airline before travelling and make sure the carrier has current contact details. Rebooking and refund arrangements vary; Singapore Airlines, for example, says customers affected by its cancellations can seek a refund of the unused part of their ticket, with those who booked through an agent or partner airline advised to contact the seller.
Featured image: AI-generated illustration.
