Press Release

Air India and Air India Express enhance West Asia operations on 7 March to bring stranded travellers home

Mar 06, 2026
INTERNATIONAL

Around 50 flights planned to and from Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, Muscat, Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah


With airspace over Saudi Arabia and Oman open, Air India and Air India Express continue to operate scheduled flights to and from Jeddah and Muscat. Airspace closures in other parts of West Asia still impact operations, and scheduled commercial flights to the affected regions remain suspended until further notice. To support guests stranded in the region, both airlines are operating additional non- scheduled commercial flights on 7 March with necessary clearances from Indian and local authorities. Air India Express will operate 43 flights across the region on 7 March, and together the airlines are connecting Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, Muscat, Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah with major Indian cities.

The following scheduled flights are planned to operate on 7th March 2026:

Country

Airport

Airline

Sector

Flight no

Oman

Muscat (MCT)

Air India Express

Mumbai - Muscat - Mumbai

IX235 / IX236

Delhi - Muscat - Delhi

IX163 / IX164

Kochi - Muscat - Kochi

IX431 / IX432

Kochi - Muscat - Kochi

IX441 / IX442

Kozhikode - Muscat - Kozhikode

IX337 / IX338

Kozhikode - Muscat - Kozhikode

IX318 / IX317

Thiruvananthapuram - Muscat - Thiruvananthapuram

IX550 / IX549

Saudia Arabia

Jeddah (JED)

Air India

Delhi - Jeddah - Delhi

AI2255 / AI2256

Mumbai - Jeddah - Mumbai

AI2251 / AI2252

Mumbai - Jeddah - Mumbai

AI2245 / AI2246

Air India Express

Kozhikode - Jeddah - Kozhikode

IX397 / IX398

Mangaluru - Jeddah

IX845

Jeddah - Hyderabad

IX940

The following additional non-scheduled flights are planned for 7 March. Since these flights are intended primarily for stranded travellers, priority will be given to guests holding existing bookings with either carrier. 

Country

Airport

Airline

Sector

Flight no

UAE

Dubai (DXB)

Air India

Mumbai - Dubai - Delhi

AI4201 / AI4202

Delhi - Dubai - Delhi

AI4205 / AI4206

Air India Express

Mumbai - Dubai - Mumbai

IX2117 / IX2118

Mumbai - Dubai - Mumbai

IX1117 / IX1118

Delhi - Dubai - Delhi

IX2115 / IX2116

Bengaluru - Dubai - Bengaluru

IX1115 / IX1116

Ras Al Khaimah (RKT)

Air India Express

Mumbai - Ras Al Khaimah - Mumbai

IX1121 / IX1122

Mumbai - Ras Al Khaimah - Mumbai

IX6605 / IX6606

Kochi - Ras Al Khaimah - Kochi

IX1123 / IX1125

Delhi - Ras Al Khaimah - Delhi

IX6603 / IX6604

Bengaluru - Ras Al Khaimah - Bengaluru

IX6701 / IX6702

Abu Dhabi (AUH)

Air India Express

Mumbai - Abu Dhabi - Mumbai

IX257 / IX268

Bengaluru - Abu Dhabi - Bengaluru

IX865 / IX866

Sharjah (SHJ)

Air India Express

Mumbai - Sharjah - Mumbai

IX251 / IX252

Bengaluru - Sharjah - Bengaluru

IX6607 / IX6608

Oman

Muscat (MCT)

Air India Express

Mumbai - Muscat - Mumbai

IX1112 / IX1113

Delhi - Muscat - Delhi

IX6601 / IX6602

Air India guests booked to travel from any point in the West Asia region (with tickets issued until
4 March 2026 and originally planned travel between 28 February and 8 March 2026) can conveniently rebook their flights to India on a future date within one month of originally intended travel date without any additional charges or otherwise applicable fare difference.

Air India guests are advised to raise their rebooking or cancellation requests on the airline’s website at http://airindia.com or contact the 24x7 customer support hotline at +911169329333 or +911169329999.

Air India Express guests booked to travel from any station in the UAE can conveniently rebook their flights without additional charges on Air India Express' additional commercial flights operating from any UAE station to any destination in India.

Example:
A guest with an active booking on a cancelled Dubai – Jaipur flight can now move their booking to a Ras Al Khaimah – Delhi flight at no extra cost.

Air India and Air India Express are proactively reaching out to impacted guests using the mobile numbers registered with the airline to provide rebooking options. Guests are requested to ensure their current and active mobile numbers are updated with the airline to receive these important notifications.

AIX Guests with active bookings can also rebook their flights through our AI‑powered digital assistant Tia, available on WhatsApp at +91 63600 12345.

Air India group is exploring every opportunity to operate other additional ad-hoc flights to and from destinations in West Asia.

Air India’s services to Europe (including the United Kingdom) and North America are operating as per schedule since 2 March 2026 on safe alternative routes. Due to the extended routing in the current circumstances, flights from India to North America are making technical stops at Rome (Fiumicino) or Vienna before continuing to the respective destinations.

List of routes on which Air India or Air India Express operations remain suspended until further notice: 

Country

Route

Airline

UAE

Abu Dhabi to Bengaluru, Delhi, Kannur, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangaluru, Mumbai, Pune, Thiruvananthapuram, and Tiruchirapalli,

Air India Express

Ras Al-Khaimah to Kannur, and Kozhikode

Sharjah to Amirtsar, Delhi, Indore, Kannur, Kochi, Kozhikode,  Surat, Thiruvananthapuram, Tiruchirapalli, Varanasi, and Vijayawada

Dubai to Amritsar, Goa, Jaipur, Lucknow, Kozhikode, Kannur, Kochi, Mangaluru, Surat, Thiruvananthapuram, and Tiruchirapalli

Dubai to Kochi, Hyderabad, and Kochi

Air India

Oman

 Salalah to Kozhikode, Kochi

Air India Express

Saudi Arabia

Riyadh to Bengaluru, Lucknow, Kannur, Kozhikode, Kannur, and Thiruvananthapuram

Air India Express

Riyadh to Delhi, and Mumbai

Air India

Dammam to Bengaluru, Delhi, Kozhikode, Kochi, Mangaluru, Tiruchirapalli, and  Thiruvananthapuram

Air India Express

Dammam to Mumbai

Air India

Kuwait

Kuwait to Bengaluru, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangaluru, and Tiruchirapalli

Air India Express

Bahrain

Bahrain to Kozhikode, Kochi, and Mangaluru

Air India Express

Qatar

Doha to Kannur, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangaluru, Thiruvananthapuram

Air India Express

Doha to Delhi and Mumbai

Air India

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