Hyderabad: International flight operations from Hyderabad were temporarily hit following the closure of Qatar’s airspace amid escalating regional tensions. Since Monday night, 18 international flights to and from Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) have been cancelled. Most of the affected flights were operated by IndiGo and Kuwait Airways, particularly those flying via Doha.
The disruption has left many passengers uncertain about their travel plans. “Due to the current situation, several flights to Doha and those transiting through Doha have been cancelled since last night,” said Anuradha Chetti, CEO of RL Tours and Travels.
“More than 100 tickets had been booked, with several more scheduled for the first week of July. While this has caused confusion, flights on alternate routes are operating normally.” She added that the summer break for most international students has limited the impact on student travel.
Anil Kumar, founder and MD of Vimaan ClickAtrip, said, “We didn’t have bookings for yesterday or today, but two of our passengers are scheduled to travel to the US via Doha in two days. People heading to Dubai in the coming weeks are now worried this situation might extend to them as well.”
Kiran Surikuchi, a traveller from Dubai to Hyderabad, said, “My family is flying to Hyderabad on Sunday. Airports in the UAE have resumed operations, and while there are some delays, flights are mostly running on time. Everything feels quite normal here.”
In a statement, IndiGo stated that its operations across most Gulf countries have now stabilised. “Flights into, out of, and through Gulf nations are operating as scheduled. However, with Iranian airspace still restricted, some flights are being rerouted, leading to longer travel times,” the airline said.
By Tuesday, IndiGo’s website displayed 16 scheduled flights to Gulf destinations. However, key Doha-bound flights 6E 1318 and 6E 1316, scheduled to depart at 8.40 am and 2.25 pm respectively, remained cancelled. Air India had one scheduled departure for the day.
After temporarily suspending flights to the Middle East, Europe and the East Coast of North America and Canada, Air India has now begun a phased resumption of services. “With airspaces gradually reopening in parts of the Middle East, we will progressively restart operations beginning today. Most Middle East routes will resume from June 25.
Flights to Europe are also being reinstated. Services to the US and Canada’s East Coast will resume as soon as possible,” said an Air India spokesperson. Some flights may still face delays or cancellations due to extended rerouting and related operational impacts, the airline added.
