15-hour flights to nowhere and over 160 diversions: How Iran's strike on a US air base upended aviation
A Qantas flight that returned to Australia after 15 hours in the air was one of over 160 diversions following Iran’s strike on a US air base in Qatar on Monday.
Flight 33 departed Perth around 8 p.m. local time on Monday and was supposed to land in Paris the following morning.
However, seven hours after takeoff, the Boeing 787 U-turned over the Indian Ocean. It landed back in Perth around 11 a.m. local time the next day.
Another Qantas flightfrom Perth to London, diverted to Singapore in a 12-hour ordeal.
In a statement on X, the airline cited “additional airspace closures and congestion through the Middle East.”
Qatar closed its airspace shortly before Iran launched missiles toward the Al Udeid Air Basein retaliation for the US bombing some of its nuclear facilities on Saturday.
The region was already home to some of the world’s most congested airspace before Iran, Iraq, and Israel closed their airspace on June 13, forcing detours.
Kuwait, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates also briefly closed their airspace on Monday night.
Indian waterwhich, like Qantas, frequently flies over the Middle East, announced Monday that it had ceased all operations to the region, Europe, and the east coast of North America. It said Tuesday it would “progressively resume” flights.
Meanwhile, carriers in the region, such as Qatar Airways and Emirates, operate huge hubs that connect passengers across the globe.
Dubai is home to the world’s busiest airport for international traffic, while Doha’s is the 10th busiest.
Using flight-tracking data, Business Insider found over 160 flights that were forced to land at a different airport due to the incident.
The majority of those, more than 100, were supposed to land at Doha’s Hamad International Airport.
A Qatar Airways flight from Barcelona spent six hours in the air before going back after turning round over Turkey. Another one from London Heathrow landed back in the British capital after nearly seven hours.
Monday night’s disruption not only affected the passengers on board but also caused dozens of airplanes to be left out of place, delaying future flights.
For example, Qatar Airways Flight 706 departed New York but had to divert to Medina in Saudi Arabia after 15 hours. It eventually continued to Doha, six-and-a-half hours behind schedule.
A Xiamen Airlines flight from Beijing U-turned over Pakistan and diverted to China’s Xinjiang region in a nine-hour ordeal.
According to data from FlightAware, 43% of flights leaving Dubai and 24% of those leaving Doha were delayed on Monday.
Israel and Iran negotiated a cease-fire overnight, easing tensions, though Israel on Tuesday morning accused Iran of breaking the cease-fire, which Tehran denied.
