Chaos as airlines scramble to suspend flights to Doha

The suspension of diplomatic ties between various countries and Qatar, announced 5 June, has led to the cancellation of flights to and from Doha for airlines headquartered in the countries involved. Under the various announcements, there are to be no land, sea or air connections between Qatar and the countries involved, which include Bahrain, KSA, and UAE in the Middle East.

Gulf Air, Bahrain’s national carrier, has suspended daily services between Bahrain and Doha with effect from 23:59, 5 June 2017 local time until further notice.

The last Gulf Air flight from Bahrain to Doha (GF530) will depart at 8:55pm on 5 June and the last Gulf Air flight from Doha to Bahrain (GF531) will depart at 10:40pm on 5 June (all times local).

"Gulf Air regrets any inconvenience this may cause to passengers affected by the suspension. A dedicated customer services team from the Gulf Air 24-hour Worldwide Contact Centre has been set up and is contacting affected passengers to offer alternative options, including full refunds on unused tickets and free rebooking to the nearest alternate Gulf Air destinations.

The airline would like to thank all its customers for their patience and understanding and advises them to contact the Gulf Air Worldwide Contact Centre on +973 1737 3737 for further information," the airline stated on its website.

Etihad Airways has suspended all flights to and from Doha, Qatar as of the evening of 5 June, until further notice.

The last flight from Abu Dhabi to Doha will depart as EY391 at 9:35pm (local time) on 5 June. The last flight from Doha to Abu Dhabi will depart as EY398 at 10:50pm (local time) on 5 June, the airline said.

All customers who are booked on Etihad Airways flights to and from Doha are being provided with alternative options, including full refunds on unused tickets and free rebooking to the nearest alternate Etihad Airways destination.

Detailed information is available by calling the Etihad Airways Contact Centre on +971 (0) 2599 0000, or by visiting‎ etihad.com.

"Etihad Airways regrets any inconvenience caused as a result of the suspension," the airline said in a statement.

"As instructed by the UAE government, Emirates will suspend its flights to and from Doha, starting from the morning of 6 June 2017, until further notice," Emirates stated on its website, apologising for the inconvenience caused to customers.

Emirates’ flights to and from Doha on 5 June, will operate as normal. The last flight from Dubai to Doha will depart as EK847 at 2:30am on 6 June. The last flight from Doha to Dubai will depart as EK848 at 3:50am on 6 June, the airline said.

Travellers bound for Doha, who are boarding their flight from airports around the Emirates network on 5 June are being advised to make alternative arrangements. "All customers booked on Emirates’ flights to and from Doha will be provided with alternative options, including full refunds on unused tickets and rebooking to alternate Emirates destinations," the airline said in the online statement.

Customers who booked with Emirates can process refunds for their tickets at online or contact their local Emirates office. Customers who booked through a travel agency should contact their travel agents.

Emirates is headquartered in Dubai while Etihad is headquartered in Abu Dhabi, UAE. 

Saudia's website carried a similar announcement, confirming that Saudi Arabian Airlines has suspended all flights to and from Qatar starting Monday 5 June.

"Due to the current situation of Qatar it has been decided to waive all tickets’ restrictions (rebooking / rerouting / refund and no-show ) of affected passengers holding confirmed reservations on flights departing from / to Qatar effective 5th of Jun’17 until further notice," the airline stated online.

There were no announcements on the Qatar Airways website at the time of writing, though media reports have noted that it has also suspended flights to various destinations.