With the situation in most of the Middle East continuing to go through waves of renewed fighting and remaining very volatile following the U.S. strike on Iran in February 2026, international airlines are unable to plan long-term service to the region.
KLM, the Dutch flag carrier known for its bright-blue livery and large network of flights to Middle Eastern cities like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and Dammam, has pushed back the return of its service to these cities at least 20 times since the start of 2026.
This in line with other major international airlines such as Air France and Lufthansa, which also recently pushed back the restart of certain Middle Eastern routes until the end of the year and into 2027.
KLM extends flight cancelations for Dubai, Riyadh and Dammam
This week, KLM also announced that it will not restart its route to Dubai International (DXB) from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) until March 27, 2027 and Riyadh (RUH) and Dammam (DMM) in Saudi Arabia until Nov. 27, 2026.
The airline had previously set Oct. 31 as the restart date for all three cities. As the main hub in the Middle East and the second-busiest airport in the world, Dubai International saw a record 95.2 million passengers in 2025. Prior to the U.S. strike on Iran, it was a major market for KLM for those flying from Europe.
Related: Airport shut down, international airlines cancel flights after Houthi attack
“Despite recent reporting about the situation in the Middle East, the current circumstances in the region still bring uncertainties,” KLM says in a statement that has been in place since the three routes were first canceled in March. “To provide clarity and certainty to travelers scheduled to fly to Dubai in the coming weeks, the cancelations have been extended.”
The airline further confirmed that anyone with a booked flight ticket for a date before the route restart will be contacted by the airline about the cancelation.
International airline service to Dubai continues to be severely restricted amid wider regional instability.
Ciel Tower Dubai
What to do with your KLM flight to the Middle East, refund options
While most of the travelers who bought a KLM flight to the Middle East will have already claimed the refund, those who purchased a ticket after the new restart date was announced or kept pushing back in the hopes that the flight will take place can continue to do so. Flights to the affected cities fall under a wider extended waiver in which passengers can change the route or request a refund to the original method of payment even in situations where their fare class would otherwise not allow for it.
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With other international airlines also currently not flying to Dubai or Abu Dhabi, state-owned United Arab Emirates airlines Emirates and Etihad Airways are currently the main way that people can get into the country.
In the middle of October, Air France of the wider Air France-KLM aviation group pushed back the restart of its route to Dubai from Paris Charles De Gaulle (CDG) until Nov. 1. German flag carrier Lufthansa also just pushed back the restart of its flights to the city from Frankfurt and Munich until Nov. 27.
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