Conflicts And Extreme Weather In The Middle East Could Impact Bali Flights

Share The Article

Dubai in the United Arab Emirates has received its annual rainfall in just a matter of hours.

As a world transportation hub and home of Emirates Airlines, the heavy rain and flooding have caused travel delays.

Heavy rain continues to fall in Dubai, with both commercial and residential areas of the city flooding. Businesses have been forced to close, and international travelers are experiencing serious travel delays.

Over one year’s average of rain fell in the first few hours of the huge storms, and Dubai International Airport, the busiest international hub in the world, had to cancel more than 50 flights while hundreds of flights experienced delays.

@abcnews Dubai’s international airport was flooded as heavy thunderstorms lashed the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, dumping the heaviest rain ever recorded in the country in the span of hours. #dubai #flood #travel #weather #airport ♬ original sound – ABC News

In an interview with Gulf News, a spokesman for DXB Dubai International Airport explain “As many as 70 flights were canceled or 13 percent of the total. “The average delay of 149 minutes or which means experiencing disruption, has a score of 5.0.”

Tourists have been stranded at Dubai Airport due to temporary runway closures, flight delays, and, eventually, cancellations.

Families stuck in Dubai Airport have told reporters that they are “living off duty-free” while they wait to hear what is happening with their travel itineraries.

@abcnews On Tuesday, Dubai was hit with severe flooding after two years' worth of rain fell in just 24 hours — over half a foot, according to the Dubai Meteorological Office. Dubai receives only 3.12 inches of rain per year on average. #dubai #flooding #dubaiflooding2024 #abcnews ♬ original sound – ABC News

Wednesday’s Emirate’s EK368 flight to Denpasar was canceled. Both of the daily Dubai-Bali flights on Thursday were delayed by at least three hours at the time of writing.

At the time of writing, the Dubai-Bali flights scheduled for Friday 19th were still set to depart on time.

With conditions changing on the ground every hour, tourists expecting to fly with Emirates to Bali or with any other airline transiting through the United Arab Emirates are encouraged to contact their airlines directly for up-the-minute information regarding flight delays, changes, and potential cancellations. 

@dailymail Torrential rain has caused severe flooding in Dubai, where more than 4.7 inches of rain – the typical yearly average – have fallen today. Planes were seen taxiing through the murky water on the runway, and flood water cascaded through luxury underground malls. 🎥 X / aviationbrk / AAA_Balushi / krugermacro / Telegram #dubai #flood #flooding #naturaldisaster #news #uae ♬ Suspense, horror, piano and music box – takaya

The Dubai-Bali-Dubai route with Emirates is one of the most popular international flight routes for Bali tourists. The Emirates service aboard the world’s largest commercial aircraft, the A480, arrives in Bali daily, carrying over 600 passengers.

Within 100 days of the service being introduced to the schedule at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International, the service carried over 100,000 passengers to the Island of the Gods.

As a result of ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, tourist traveling from North America and Europe to Bali, via a layover in Dubai, Doha or Jeddah, are also being encouraged to check in with their airlines before departure. 

Tourism leaders in Bali are concerned about the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, especially as tensions between Israel and Iran rise.

The Deputy Chairman of the Bali Tourism Association, I Nyoman Astama, shared his insights. He explained “it will be seen next month when the summer holidays [arrive] through to July, but it still depends on developments in the situation.”

He added, “I think if there is no retaliatory attack from Israel, I think [the Bali high season] will continue well, meaning the atmosphere will improve, but we don’t know what will happen in the future.”

“But with the current situation [some airlines] are avoiding that area it means that the time will increase and the cost of fuel will increase.” This could lead to increased ticket fares and prospective Bali tourists having to reconsider their vacation plans. 

Astama believes that both airlines and travel agents have sufficient resources to ensure that all tourists who have made travel plans to Bali will still be able to make their trips, especially from Europe and North America, no matter what situations unfold in the Middle East between now and the peak high season. 

Tourists traveling to Bali should also be reassured that the volcanic eruption of Mout Ruang and subsequent tsunami warnings do not affect Bali or Bali travel.

Mount Ruang is located on the isolated Sitaro islands in North Sulawesi. While over 1,000 local people have been ordered to evacuate, the area is not often visited by tourists.