India-based airlines on Tuesday commenced special operations to repatriate stranded Indian nationals from West Asia following recent airspace disruptions that have led to widespread cancellations along with air fare volatility.
The repatriation flights come even as Indian airlines cancelled scores of flights to the West Asia region. On March 2, airlines had cancelled a total of 357 flights.
Apart from cancellations, industry insiders said the crisis has led to a rise in international airfares, with ticket prices increasing by 10–15 per cent at the lower end for Europe-bound flights and by 30–35 per cent on certain continental United States routes, driven by longer alternative routings and supply constraints.
On Tuesday, Air India brought back 149 passengers from Dubai on flight AI916D, which landed in Delhi at 10:58 hrs Indian Standard Time.
Earlier in the day, 143 cockpit and cabin crew members of Air India and Air India Express who were stranded in Dubai arrived in Delhi on flight AI918D.
The airline said it will deploy widebody aircraft, including Boeing 777 and 787 planes, with higher capacity on its services to Jeddah and Dubai on March 3 and 4 to facilitate the return of passengers impacted by the ongoing situation in West Asia.
Besides, SpiceJet operated four special flights on March 3 from Fujairah to Delhi, Mumbai and Kochi, including two services to Mumbai. The airline will restore its scheduled flights between Fujairah and Delhi and between Fujairah and Mumbai from March 4.
Meanwhile, IndiGo said it has begun repatriation efforts in coordination with relevant authorities and will progressively reinstate select scheduled services from March 4. Operations are expected to resume to Muscat, Jeddah and Madinah, as well as Athens, totalling 13 return flights or 26 sectors.
In addition, Air India Express said it will continue to operate scheduled flights to and from Muscat on March 4, alongside services to Delhi, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangaluru, Mumbai and Tiruchirappalli, and will operate additional flights to Delhi, Kochi and Mumbai.
Published on March 3, 2026