Gulf airlines get back to business as flights near pre-war levels

Published 19 Jun, 2026 11:22am 1 min read
Emirates and Qatar Airways planes on the tarmac at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport in Sydney, Australia. -- Reuters
Emirates and Qatar Airways planes on the tarmac at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport in Sydney, Australia. -- Reuters

Say it quietly, but Gulf airlines are back in business.

The Middle East is home to some of the world’s biggest carriers, whose networks have been upended by the Iran conflict, with Iranian missile and drone attacks at times shutting airports in ​recent months and redrawing traffic routes across the Gulf.

Flightradar24.com data shows that the overall number of flights by major Gulf airlines ‌has now returned to some 82% of the level on February 27, the day before the war started. Gulf Air and Kuwait Airways have topped 100% of that level in recent days.

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