Photo: Screenshot from VariFlight

Since February 28, flights operated by multiple countries in the Middle East have been severely affected by the US-Israeli military attacks on Iran. Following safety assessments, Chinese airlines have now resumed some services between China and the Middle East countries, CAAC News reported on Thursday.

On March 2 and 4, Hainan Airlines carried out two round-trip flights between Haikou and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Air China plans to operate one round-trip flight per day between the Beijing Capital International Airport and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on March 5, 6 and 7, and one round-trip flight per day between the Beijing Capital International Airport and Dubai, UAE, on March 6, 7 and 8.

China Eastern Airlines plans to operate one round-trip flight between the Beijing Daxing International Airport and Muscat, Oman, on March 5, according to CAAC News.

China Southern Airlines plans to operate one round-trip flight between Guangzhou and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on March 6, to bring back stranded passengers and crew members.

Data from VariFlight sent to the Global Times on Thursday showed that Air China's CA789 from Beijing to Riyadh departed from the Beijing Capital International Airport at 1:32 pm (Beijing time) on Thursday.

This flight was the first by a Chinese airline to the Middle East following the impact of the regional situation. It is expected to arrive at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh at about 8:20 pm (local time).

The return flight, CA790, is scheduled to depart at 10:55 pm (local time) on Thursday, and is expected to land in Beijing at 12:52 pm Beijing time on Friday.

According to data from Umetrip, as of Wednesday there were approximately 40 scheduled flights from the United Arab Emirates to the Chinese mainland between Wednesday and Friday. During the same period, there were about 10 scheduled flights from Saudi Arabia to the Chinese mainland.

Following a sweeping regional shutdown, Middle East-related air traffic has begun a limited resumption. Industry data showed that the region's air traffic posted a modest day-on-day improvement on Wednesday, but the region's functioning network remains concentrated around a narrow set of backbone hubs, according to VariFlight.

On Tuesday, 5,093 of 9,359 related flights operated while 3,282 were canceled. On Wednesday, 5,331 of 9,549 flights operated and 3,122 were canceled.

Notably, the restored directions were not limited to Europe, the Gulf and South Asia. Eight China-bound routes also reappeared, including Riyadh-Beijing Daxing, Jeddah-Guangzhou and Haikou, Dubai-Guangzhou, Istanbul-Chengdu Tianfu and Cairo-Hangzhou, VariFlight said on Thursday.

Emirates said in a notice sent to the Global Times on Thursday that it is currently operating a reduced flight schedule until further notice. For Thursday and Friday, more than 100 flights will depart from Dubai and return. These flights will carry people eager to reach their final destinations, as well as essential cargo such as perishables and pharmaceuticals.

VariFlight said that Emirates flight EK362 (Dubai-Guangzhou) arrived at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport on Wednesday. This was the first flight to the Chinese mainland since Dubai International Airport resumed operations.

Global Times