Several airlines plying the Entebbe – Dubai route remain parked at Entebbe International Airport, following the closure of the Dubai Airspace amidst continued attacks by the joint US / Israel on Iran and the retaliatory attacks by Iran on US bases in the gulf states.
According to a source at the Airport, three Dubai Airlines Qatar Airways, Air Arabia and Fly Dubai that flew into the country early in Saturday at the beginning of the Iran bombing’s by the joint forces, remain parked at the airport as the situation escalates.
The source revealed that on Saturday Fly Dubai, that landed in the country at 10am before departing for Dubai at 11am stopped midway the flight and returned back to Entebbe Airport landing safely after 3pm.
Following the closure of the airspace on Saturday, Uganda Airlines in a statement revealed that it had also temporarily suspended it’s flights to Dubai temporarily following the closure Dubai Airspace.
“Uganda Airlines wishes to inform its esteemed guests and the general public of the temporary suspension of its scheduled flights between Entebbe International Airport (EBB) and Dubai International Airport (DXB)” the airline said.
The airline noted that it will ensure affected passengers holding confirmed bookings on the suspended flights will be re-accommodated on alternative carriers where possible or rebooked on future Uganda Airlines flights at no additional cost once operations resume.
When contacted for comment on the situation at the Airport, the manager public affairs at the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) Mr Vianney Luggya, confirmed that Qatar Airways and Air Arabia didn’t depart for Dubai and remain parked at the Airport alongside Fly Dubai and urged affected passengers to remain in touch with their airlines for information on when the normal flight schedules will resume.
“In such situations safety of passengers and crew takes priority, the airlines have communicated to their passengers, some of them issued statements on their websites and they are also in touch with their passengers about the changes, we urge passengers who were destined for the Middle East to continue being in touch with their airlines for information and updates in case of any reschedules and further advisories” he said.
Mr Luggya further said all other operations at the Airport are going on normally at the Airport.
“Middle East is not the only destination that airlines from Entebbe fly to, there are other operations going on in the region, in Africa, Europe and other continents. Those operations are continuing normally, the only affected operations are those to the Middle East, we continue to monitor the situation in regards to the airlines and our counterparts in the Middle East” he said.
On Saturday, the US and Israel attacked Iran which retaliated by bombing US bases in Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and the Saudi Arabia.
The attacks from both sides led to Dubai International and Dubai World Central – Al Maktoum International being shut down and consequently all flight operations at the airports were suspended until further notice as the Dubai airspace was closed off.
