Emirates flights from Melbourne and Sydney flights diverted after Dubai airport drone attack
An Emirates flight which departed from Melbourne last night bound for Dubai International Airport has been diverted, following a drone attack near the airport.
EK407 left Melbourne at 10.52 pm last night and was due to arrive at Dubai International at 5.40am today (Dubai time), according to information on FlightRadar24.
A drone attack near the Dubai International hit a fuel tank, forcing authorities to temporarily suspend flights.
The flight instead landed at Dubai World Central, the international airport in Jebel Ali, Dubai, about an hour’s drive away.
A Dubai International-bound flight from Sydney was also diverted.
EK413 left Sydney at 9.54pm last night and was due to arrive at 5.15 Monday morning Dubai time at Dubai International and was instead diverted to Dubai World Central, information from FlightRadar24 showed.
Both planes were Airbus A380s. Emirates information suggests passengers will be transferred by air to Dubai international.
The airline was contacted for comment.
“All flights to and from Dubai have been temporarily suspended,” Emirates posted after the attack.
“We would like to thank our customers for their understanding and patience,” the Dubai-based airline said, warning passengers not to go to the airport.
The incident is the third at the Dubai airport, one of the world’s busiest international travel hubs, since Iran began its attacks on Gulf nations on February 28.
A significant number of Australians have relied on travel through Dubai to reach Europe and the UK in recent years. The outbreak of the war has paralysed flights between Australasia and Europe, stranding more than ten thousand Australians in transit.
Iran has been sending salvos of missiles and drones toward military and civilian targets across the Persian Gulf, after Israel and the US mounted an attack on Tehran, seeking regime change.
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