ONGOING escalations in the Middle East have seen thousands of flights cancelled in recent days, leaving even more stranded.
While the majority of those affected are in Dubai, along with Doha and Abu Dhabi, the airspace closure has had a knock-on effect to other countries.
Dubai‘s main airport is not just one of the world’s busiest, but is a major hub which connects Europe to long-haul destinations in Africa and Asia.
Not only that, but airlines that were due to fly over the airspace may be forced to cancel or reroute flights.
Here are some of the other destinations that have also been affected by the US-Iran crisis, outside of the Middle East.
Thailand
Tourists heading to Thailand have been caught up in the flight cancellations as well.
Local media reported 59 international flights cancelled in recent days, either to the Middle East or via the airspace.
Thailand has already looked into offering support by hotels and food for those stuck at the airport, with plans for special travel packages for those still unable to fly.
Despite this, direct flights such as with Norse Airways to Bangkok are still operating later this week.
Others on social media said they were having to fly via other routes such as South Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Another said: “Fly Oman Air – We just flew them yesterday from Phuket to Muscat to London”.
And Thailand is still deemed safe to travel to, excluding the areas on the Malaysia and Cambodia border.
Maldives
The Maldives is also seeing flight cancellations, especially those to and from Europe.
European tourism makes up half of the annual visitor numbers, with the majority of flights being via the Middle East.
Around 28 flights were cancelled over the weekend, affecting more than 5,000 passengers.
One person wrote on TikTok: “We’ve had to rebook our Emirates flight and we are going from the Maldives to Shanghai to then get back to London”.
Direct flights can still operate with Virgin Atlantic although these might now take longer.
The Maldives is still on the safe travel list.
Bali
Brits heading to Bali would have most likely travelled via the Middle East.
However, more than 15 flights have been cancelled since the weekend, affecting flights from Bali via Abu Dhabi, Doha and Dubai.
Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport’s Gede Eka Sandi Asmadi said: “As of Monday afternoon, a total of 15 international flights have been cancelled.”
Brits will instead have to look at flying via other hubs such as Singapore, with Singapore Airlines, or via Istanbul with Turkish Airlines.
Stranded tourists are saying they are booking flights via Shanghai instead, or to fly via Australia and Los Angeles.
Bali remains safe to travel to.
Sri Lanka
Tourists have also been left stuck in Sri Lanka due to the Middle East cancellations.
SriLankan Airlines has cancelled 10 flights to the Middle East due “the continued closure of airspace in certain parts of the Middle East.”
These were due to fly to Dubai, Doha, Dammam, Riyadh, and Kuwait.
Some passengers aid they were stuck in Colombo Airport, while others said they were having to fly via Bangkok instead.
SriLankan Airlines does operate a direct route from London once a day, which still appears to be in operation.
All of Sri Lanka remains on the safe travel list.
Australia
One of the main flight routes between the UK and Australia is via Dubai, which has resulted in many flight cancellations.
As many as 115,000 Australians are thought to be currently stranded in the Middle East right now.
Nearly 30 flights were left stuck at airports across Australia yesterday, with mainly planned to fly to Doha or Dubai.
Alternative routes include going via Singapore, Kuala Lumpur or Hong Kong, or flying directly to Perth.
However, flights are likely to take longer due to rerouting to avoid the airspace.
There are no travel warnings in place for Australia.
Egypt
Egypt holidays and flights remain unaffected, with routes from the UK not flying over the Middle East airspace closure.
There are travel bans in place across Egypt, mainly across the Libya and Israel border.
However, the tourist destinations of Sharm el Sheikh and Hurghada remain safe to travel to.
Turkey
Turkey also remains unaffected as flights from the UK do not go over the Middle Eastern airspace.
The majority of Turkey remains safe to travel to, excluding the border with Syria.