German flag carrier Lufthansa has postponed the restart of its services to Dubai International (DXB) until 25 November 2026, saying the current situation and outlook in the Middle East make resumption impracticable.
“In light of the current situation and outlook in the Middle East, the Lufthansa Group decided today to postpone its planned resumption of flights to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) until 25 November 2026,” Lufthansa said in a statement.
The carrier has not flown to Dubai from Munich (MUN) and Frankfurt (FRA) since March 2026. Both routes had been scheduled to restart on 25 and 26 October respectively before the latest postponement. Lufthansa said affected passengers will be contacted directly and offered flexible rebooking options or a full refund.
Subsidiaries and wider context
The postponement also applies to Dubai services operated by Lufthansa group subsidiaries Swiss and Eurowings, which were likewise scheduled to resume by the start of November and have been given the same tentative restart date of 25 November 2026.
The decision follows months of disruption to international services into parts of the Middle East. The extracted reporting notes that many international carriers halted flights into cities such as Dubai, Doha and Tel Aviv after the US–Israeli strike on Iran on 28 February, and that a recent string of Houthi attacks on airports and other targets in Saudi Arabia in October has further driven suspensions and delays to restarts. KLM and Air France are among other major European carriers that have repeatedly delayed returns to the market since the beginning of the year.
Operational and passenger implications
Lufthansa said it will contact passengers with confirmed bookings on the affected services to offer options, without providing further operational details in the statement.
- Routes affected: Frankfurt–Dubai (FRA–DXB) and Munich–Dubai (MUN–DXB)
- Suspension in place since: March 2026
- New restart date: 25 November 2026 (postponed from late October)
- Group carriers affected: Lufthansa, Swiss, Eurowings
| carrier | origin | destination | start date | weekly frequency | aircraft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lufthansa | Munich (MUN) | Dubai International (DXB) | 25 November 2026 | not specified | not specified |
| Lufthansa | Frankfurt (FRA) | Dubai International (DXB) | 25 November 2026 | not specified | not specified |
The extracted reporting emphasises that attempts to restart services to the region have been repeatedly delayed across the year because of the unstable security environment. Airlines have sought to balance network restoration with crew and passenger safety amid intermittent escalations, while certain Gulf airports and carriers continue to operate under constrained conditions.
“Affected passengers will be contacted directly by their respective airlines and will be offered flexible rebooking options or a full refund.”
Other European carriers have similarly cited the regional security situation when deferring restarts of routes into the Gulf and wider Middle East.
For airlines, the repeated postponements underline the operational challenges of maintaining long-haul schedules into a region where airspace security assessments and risk perception remain fluid.
