Staff Reporter:
At least 12 flights from Dhaka Airport to the United Arab Emirates have been cancelled due to unprecedented flooding since Tuesday.
Dhaka Airport Executive Director Group Captain Kamrul Islam informed Dhaka Tribune that so far, 12 UAE flights operated by EK, Air Arabia, and flydubai have been cancelled.
He further said: “Currently, only passengers bound for Dubai will be accommodated until 1am tomorrow (Saturday). However, transit passengers will not be accommodated for some time as the status of their subsequent flights remains uncertain.”
He also mentioned that airlines are informing passengers of delays or cancellations so they can either rebook their flights or obtain refunds without hassle.
An Air Arabia Dhaka Airport official informed this reporter that they have cancelled five flights. Emirates cancelled three scheduled flights but continued to accommodate transit passengers. Meanwhile, flydubai cancelled two flights.
Group Captain Taslim Ahmed, director at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong, told Dhaka Tribune on Thursday: “flydubai is currently operating normally, while four flights originating from Dubai were cancelled two days ago.”
On the first day, a flight of Air Arabia from Sharjah was cancelled, while a flydubai flight from Dubai and another Air Arabia flight from Dubai were also cancelled.
An official from Air Arabia informed Dhaka Tribune that passengers have already been notified of their flight cancellations and rescheduled dates. Passengers can either receive a refund or fly following the rescheduled date.
In addition to this, Biman Bangladesh Airline and US Bangla have rescheduled three flights for April 16, 17, and 18.
US Bangla spokesperson Kamrul Islam said they were resuming the Abu Dhabi flight from Friday.
According to media reports, the CEO of Dubai Airports said on Friday that he expects services to return “close to normality” within 24 hours as the major transit hub continues to deal with the fallout from Tuesday’s unprecedented flooding.
Similar to passengers from other countries, thousands of Bangladeshi passengers, including expatriates, Umrah returnees, and students, were stuck at several airports, including Dhaka Airport, Dubai, and Sharjah, due to the flooding.
Regarding this issue, Dhaka Airport Executive Director Kamrul Islam said passengers are being provided meals or hotel accommodations as per the airline policy.
In an email conversation with Dhaka Tribune, George Edwar Yaqoub Abdelmalik, an official from Dubai International (DXB), said: “Dubai Airports is doing its best to support passengers at Dubai International (DXB) impacted by travel delays due to the recent unprecedented weather conditions experienced in the UAE.”
However, due to the ongoing disruption and to assist in the effectiveness of recovery, DXB is limiting the number of inbound flights from 12 noon on Friday for 48 hours. Departures will continue to operate.
