Flights from Incheon International Airport to the Middle East are being canceled in succession following U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran. Both passenger and cargo aircraft have been grounded, disrupting logistics operations.
According to Incheon International Airport Corporation, flight QR859 scheduled to depart for Doha at 12:20 a.m. on March 1 was canceled. Flight KE951, set to leave for Dubai at 1 p.m., was also grounded. Three passenger flights bound for Dubai and Abu Dhabi were canceled the previous day on February 28.
Cargo flights have also been affected. Flight QR8985, a cargo aircraft scheduled to take off at 3:10 a.m. on March 1, was canceled the day before.
Flight EY823 to Abu Dhabi, scheduled to depart at 5:50 p.m. on March 1, had reportedly not confirmed its departure status as of 4 p.m.
One harrowing incident involved an aircraft turning back mid-flight. A Korean Air passenger plane that took off for Dubai around 1:35 p.m. the previous day made an emergency return to Incheon Airport. The aircraft was reportedly over Myanmar airspace when it received news that Dubai International Airport had been attacked and completely shut down.
Arrival flights have also been grounded. Four passenger flights and one cargo flight scheduled to depart from Doha, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai for Incheon on March 1 were all canceled.
Flight disruptions to the Middle East are expected to continue. Korean Air announced on March 1 that flights on the Incheon-Dubai and Dubai-Incheon routes have been canceled through March 5 due to airspace restrictions caused by regional instability. The airline stated that operations from March 6 onward will be determined based on the evolving situation in the Middle East.
A Korean Air official said, "We will continue monitoring the situation and adjust subsequent schedules accordingly."