Qatari airspace was briefly closed due to missile strikes from Iran.
A Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300ER (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)
Qatar Airways resumed flights to and from its home country on Monday as the Qatari government reopened the nation’s airspace.
In a statement on X, the airline said it was deploying extra staff at its hub at Hamad International Airport in Doha to assist customers as flights restarted.
Commercial air traffic was briefly halted in the hours leading up to and following an Iranian missile attack aimed at Al Udeid Air Base near Doha, where both U.S. and Qatari forces are stationed. Nearly all the missiles fired by Iran were intercepted, Qatari officials said, and there were no casualties or injuries.
A number of other Gulf states, including Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, gradually followed Qatar’s lead and reopened their airspace late Monday and early Tuesday as the threat of another salvo from Iran receded.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran provided “early notice” of its plan to target Al Udeid, which gave American and Qatari forces there time to prepare.
The ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, which started June 13, has disrupted air travel throughout the region. Israeli airspace has been shut down for much of the last 12 days, though on Monday the country allowed a limited number of outbound flights to depart. The Israeli government has also organized repatriation flights to bring thousands of Israelis home from abroad.
Last week, United paused flights between New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport and Dubai, while American temporarily suspended service between Philadelphia International Airport and Doha. Other airlines, including British Airways and Singapore Airlines, have also halted flights to and from the Gulf region as a precaution.
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