Amid escalating hostilities across West Asia, SpiceJet has announced nine special evacuation flights from the United Arab Emirates to India for stranded Indian nationals, scheduled across March 15 and 16.
The airline will operate seven flights out of Fujairah and two from Dubai over the two-day window, as airspace restrictions linked to the ongoing regional conflict continue to strand foreign nationals across Gulf countries.
Flight Schedule: March 15 and 16
On March 15, SpiceJet is running three special flights from Fujairah two bound for New Delhi and one for Mumbai. A separate flight from Dubai to Pune is also operational to help passengers reach their destinations.
On March 16, the carrier plans to run four additional flights from Fujairah to India, along with one more from Dubai. SpiceJet stated it has been coordinating with airport authorities and other stakeholders to ensure smooth operations and efficient passenger handling.
This is not the airline’s first such effort. On March 4, SpiceJet had already operated eight special flights from the UAE to assist Indian nationals returning home.
IndiGo and Air India Cancel Flights
Meanwhile, IndiGo and Air India have cancelled several of their scheduled services. In an early Sunday statement, IndiGo said, “Due to the evolving situation in Middle East, flight operations have been further restricted in Dubai, leading to changes in flight schedules.”
Air India, in a separate statement on Sunday, said, “Following instructions from UAE Airport Authorities, Air India and Air India Express are compelled to further curtail their ad-hoc operations for 15 March 2026.”
The carrier added that all Air India Express flights planned for the day to and from Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah, and Sharjah stand cancelled. Both Air India and Air India Express will now operate one round trip each on the Delhi–Dubai sector, subject to slot availability and prevailing conditions. Passengers booked on cancelled or suspended services have been offered the option to rebook to a future date at no additional charge or receive a full refund.
How the Conflict Escalated
The flight disruptions stem from military strikes launched by the US and Israel on Iran on February 28, which killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei along with several other senior Iranian officials. The US named the operation ‘Epic Fury’, while Israel referred to it as ‘Lion’s Roar’. The strikes came against the backdrop of rising tensions between Washington and Tehran over Iran’s nuclear programme.
In retaliation, Iran launched attacks on Israel and US military installations across the region, targeting bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, the UAE, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Azerbaijan triggering widespread airspace disruptions that continue to affect commercial aviation across the Gulf.
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