First Flight Departs Dubai for Australia After Middle East Airspace Shutdown

Flight tracking data shows the aircraft left Dubai earlier today and is expected to land in Sydney at about 10:30 p.m.

An Emirates Airbus A380 passenger aircraft takes off from Dubai International Airport in Dubai on March 2, 2026. Fadel Senna/AFP via Getty Images

A flight carrying passengers from the United Arab Emirates to Australia has departed Dubai for Sydney, marking the first service to resume since regional airspace closures halted travel during the Middle East conflict.

Flight tracking data shows the aircraft left Dubai on March 4 and is expected to land in Sydney at about 10:30 p.m. local time.

The departure represents the first confirmed commercial flight from the UAE to Australia since flights were suspended when escalating hostilities forced authorities to shut sections of regional airspace.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said earlier that the service would only proceed if safety conditions allowed.

“As I said, it was scheduled for morning Dubai time, but that obviously is dependent on the circumstances,” Wong told ABC mornings on March 4.

Australians Assisted in UAE

Wong confirmed Australians affected by the disruptions are being supported while waiting for travel to resume.

She told the Senate the government had been in close contact with authorities in the UAE and had thanked them for assisting stranded travellers.

“The UAE and airlines are working hard to put flights on for travel when its safe to do so and we will continue to work with airlines in the region to support Australians,” she said.

Wong said she had spoken with UAE’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister on the morning of March 3 to express solidarity and appreciation for the support being provided.

Australians caught up in the disruption are receiving accommodation and meals while waiting for flights to restart.

The minister said the scale of the disruption was unusually large because the region normally serves as a major transit hub for Australians travelling between Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

“The situation is unprecedented because the hub that we would usually rely on in a crisis are in crisis, rather than being the solution,” she said.

Around 11,000 Australians typically travel through the region every day, with the majority passing through the UAE.

Opposition Urges Evacuation Plan

The Coalition has urged the government to move more quickly to evacuate Australians from the region.

Shadow Foreign Minister Ted O'Brien said authorities should prioritise getting as many Australians as possible out of the conflict zone.

“There has been double standards by the government in how they have treated the Australian people on this and that is unacceptable,” O’Brien was quoted as saying by The Guardian.

He argued the government had acted earlier to remove diplomatic staff but was slower to issue similar warnings to the wider public.

O’Brien said on Feb. 25 the government determined the risk was high enough to evacuate diplomats and their dependents.

However, he said it took several more days and further missile attacks before the same level of urgency was applied to ordinary Australians.

He also criticised the timing of official travel warnings, arguing authorities were slow to advise Australians not to travel to the region.

“That is not acceptable,“ he said. ”The obligation now is on the government to ensure they do everything possible to ensure that Australians are, first and foremost, safe, but secondly, there’s an option there for them to be evacuated.”