Etihad Airways, Emirates set to resume limited flights from UAE to Singapore amid Middle East conflict
The Singapore Embassy in Abu Dhabi advised Singaporeans in the UAE to visit the airlines' websites immediately to secure tickets.
File photo of an Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways plane. (Photo: AFP/Frederic J Brown)
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SINGAPORE: Etihad Airways and Emirates are set to resume limited services from the United Arab Emirates to Singapore, amid airspace disruptions caused by the Middle East conflict.
Etihad Airways has released tickets for flights from Abu Dhabi to Singapore starting Thursday (Mar 5).
The Singapore Embassy in Abu Dhabi advised Singaporeans in the UAE to visit the airline’s website immediately to secure seats, warning that demand is expected to be extremely high.
"We recommend visiting Etihad Airways website quickly and securing tickets if you wish to leave the country," the embassy said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
“Be prepared for high website traffic and potential delays in booking systems. Given the urgency and limited availability, we strongly encourage immediate action if you wish to secure seats," it added.
“If you do secure tickets, please reconfirm with the airline that the flight will proceed before heading to the airport.”
Given the current circumstances, Singaporeans should be ready for cancellations, frequent changes and delays, possibly at short notice, said the embassy.
Those who had previously indicated interest in assisted departure during a recent embassy survey were asked to inform the embassy and Consulate-General if they managed to secure seats.
The embassy posted a similar message on Facebook about an Emirates flight from Dubai to Singapore.
Checks on Emirates' website showed that flight EK314 was scheduled to depart Dubai at 9pm local time on Wednesday, according to the Emirates website.
Emirates said it continues to operate a limited number of passenger repatriation and freighter flights on Tuesday and Wednesday.
"We are accommodating customers with earlier bookings as a priority on these limited flights," it said.
Customers should not go to the airport unless they have been notified directly by Emirates or hold a confirmed booking for these flights, said the airline.
"Customers are advised to check flight status, review the latest operational updates on emirates.com, and check their email for any notifications about changes or cancellations to their flights before travelling to the airport," it added.
Governments and airlines are scrambling to repatriate tens of thousands of travellers stranded in the Middle East.
Airlines including Air France, British Airways and Singapore Airlines have all suspended flights to the Middle East for the coming days.
A check by CNA on Etihad's website on Wednesday afternoon showed an Abu Dhabi-Singapore flight available on Mar 5. It is scheduled to depart Abu Dhabi at about 10pm local time and arrive in Singapore the next day at about 9.30am.
The one-way flight costs about 5,000 AED (US$1,360) for economy and can go as high as 20,000 AED for business class.
Several flights on Friday were listed for booking. Only one was a direct flight to Singapore.
The UAE's Minister for Economy and Tourism Abdulla Touq Al Marri on Tuesday said that the country had opened safe air corridors in coordination with Gulf countries.
He said it has a current handling capacity of 48 flights per hour, reported the Dubai-based English language newspaper Gulf News.
The minister also reportedly urged passengers not to proceed to airports unless they were contacted directly by their airlines.
