Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha flights cancelled for months as British Airways makes announcement

The decision came after a strike at Dubai International Airport caused major disruption on Monday. (Image: Getty)

British Airways has cancelled all flights into Dubai until June, blaming "continued uncertainty" and "airspace instability" in the Gulf. The flag carrier airline has also suspended travel to Bahrain, Tel Aviv and Amman until May 31, as the conflict in Iran continues to rage. Trips to Doha are similarly on hold until the end of April, while flights to Abu Dhabi aren't expected to resume until October.

The decision, which marks the most significant airline response to the war in the Middle East, came just hours after Dubai International Airport was shut down following an Iranian drone strike on a fuel storage tank. Emergency crews were called to the scene, and flights were suspended for several hours, with incoming planes diverted to the smaller Al Maktoum International Airport. No injuries have been reported.

British Airways is among the European carriers that has suspended all flights to Dubai (Image: Getty)

While regional airlines have increased flights in a bid to rescue stranded passengers, using narrow air corridors patrolled by military jets, none of the major European carriers has resumed flights to Dubai since the conflict escalated.

Residents in Dubai and Doha woke up to the sound of explosions on Tuesday as air defences worked to intercept a fresh wave of incoming Iranian fire, with Dubai briefly shutting its airspace in response to "incoming missile and drone threats".

Israel also said it had begun a "wide-scale wave of strikes" on Iran, alongside stepping up attacks on Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

The conflict, which has seen Iran put a stranglehold on the global shipping route, the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil is transported, has sparked fears of an international energy crisis.