•Airline carried 1.7mn passengers in two weeks

Chinedu Eze

Emirates’ Airlines has announced that its passengers experienced minimal disruptions to their travel plans on Monday in cognisance of the Middle East crisis, but regularly scheduled flights resumed yesterday.

A statement by the airline said it quickly activated its robust contingency and disruption plans, with no diversions, only a small number of cancellations and a few flights experiencing longer flight paths due to airspace congestion.

 “Despite rapidly evolving regional developments, it’s been business as usual across the Emirates network. In the past two weeks, Emirates has maintained scheduled services by rerouting flights to avoid conflict zones, successfully serving over 1.7 million passengers on more than 5,800 flights across its global network and delivering certainty to their travel plans when they needed it the most, while upholding its commitment to safe, reliable travel.

“The airline took immediate action by suspending flights only to areas directly impacted by conflict while maintaining operations to all other destinations. Services to Amman and Beirut were briefly suspended but resumed quickly, demonstrating Emirates’ ability to nimbly adapt its operations while prioritising safety, and helping thousands of families start their summer holidays,” the airline said.

It also noted that the safety of Emirates’ passengers and crew was its absolute priority, and the airline would never fly if it was not safe to do so.

 “Emirates continuously monitors developments, coordinates with aviation authorities, and assesses every potential risk to ensure all flights are safely rerouted away from conflict zones, all the while meeting the most stringent regulatory requirements.

 “Throughout the last two weeks, the airline kept customers informed with regular operational website updates as well as on its social media channels, and reservations teams helped re-accommodate affected customers,” the airline further said in the statement.

It added that as it gears up for the busy summer travel season, it would continue to actively monitor developments in co-ordination with the relevant authorities, and the airline’s priority will always be to ensure safe and smooth operations, by adapting quickly and appropriately, so that customers can travel with confidence.

 “For decades, the airline has successfully navigated challenges while maintaining its commitment to connecting customers to their destinations safely, efficiently and comfortably all while delivering exceptional service on-board and on ground.

“The UAE’s leadership have put in place strong contingency plans and systems to support essential services, empowering Emirates to maintain safe, uninterrupted operations,” the airline also said.

​