US-Israel war on Iran upends Europe’s summer holiday travel patterns

London, United Kingdom – Nadia Waleed had set off from London with her husband and three daughters for a holiday in Bali, before continuing on to Pakistan, with stopovers in Dubai.

“A family holiday with multiple flights and stopovers is stressful at the best of times, but the situation in Iran resulted in multiple last minute changes in flight schedules by [the Emirates] airline,” she told Al Jazeera about her trip this summer.

Days before flying, her return flight schedule had changed. A three-hour stopover in Dubai was now extended to 18 hours.

“A two-hour-long phone marathon ensued whereby we managed to get earlier return flights from Pakistan which reduced the layover duration,” she said.

But the next day, one family member’s schedule was changed again – their return flight was pushed back by a month.

“We have also had emails informing us of changes in flight details during our holiday by one hour, requiring rearranging of taxis and pickups,” she said.

Her experience is a small, personal illustration of a larger disruption.

The United States-Israel war on Iran has forced airlines to abandon huge stretches of airspace, sending commercial traffic on longer, costlier detours and upending the plans of families, retirees and honeymooners.