Israel-Iran conflict: Oman Air restores flights halted for Ramzan offering relief to expats stuck in Gulf

Hundreds of Indian expatriates from the UAE are travelling to Muscat by road. The 450-km journey from Dubai takes about six hours, including roughly one hour for border clearance.

Transit pass

“If you are on a dependent visa and travelling by road from Dubai to Muscat, better apply online for Oman’s transit pass. It usually takes less than 24 hours and makes the journey smoother, especially for visit and dependent visa holders,” said P.K. Anwar Naha, general secretary of the National Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC), UAE.

A flight attendant helping a passenger on a chartered flight from Fujairah to Kochi on Tuesday.

Mr. Naha, an investor visa holder, returned from Dubai via Muscat on Tuesday night. He said that several students visiting family in the UAE or renewing residency permits opted for the road route to reach home in time for their exams on Thursday (SSLC) and Friday (Plus Two).

Oman offers free transit passes for GCC residents; others pay five rials (about ₹1,100). “Some passengers reached Muscat airport a day ahead of their flights,” he said.

Umrah travellers

Oman shares borders with Yemen, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, making road travel from Bahrain, Qatar or Kuwait more complicated due to multiple border crossings. Distances from Saudi Arabia are long: 1,400 km from Riyadh (20 hours) and 1,750 km from Jeddah (23 hours). Many Umrah travellers stranded in Makkah and Jeddah flew to Muscat to catch flights to India.

“In my flight, about 30% of passengers were from Saudi Arabia, mostly returning from Umrah,” said Mr. Naha.

Although chartered flights operate from UAE destinations, delays are common. A Fujairah-Kochi flight on Tuesday was delayed by several hours. “Even though these flights charge more, they get the least priority,” he said explaining the delay.

According to him, most GCC governments have anticipated the crisis. “Supermarkets are stocked, and people are advised not to panic. But the concentration of 700 to 1,000 ships, mostly oil tankers, in the Strait of Hormuz is a serious concern for countries like the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain. If shipping is blocked, all businesses in the Gulf will be affected; not just oil,” Mr. Naha said.