Great news for Australian travellers heading to Europe this Summer; Emirates and Etihad have been cleared to return to full schedules after two months of disruption. This comes after the UAE has removed all temporary airspace and airport restrictions imposed during the Middle East conflict.

Emirates and Etihad boast fantastic Business Class products and are key carriers for Australians travelling to Europe. Their one-stop flights through the UAE to major European destinations make them popular amongst Australian passengers wanting good connection times and a top Business Class product. See our Emirates or Etihad Business Class deals for more.

Emirates and Etihad Airways in Australia

The all-clear came on Saturday, when the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority confirmed all temporary limits on airspace and airport operation had been removed following a safety review. This marks the UAE’s flag carriers to confidently move towards full schedules for the first time since early March.

Emirates moved first on the Australian network. Emirates will operate 45 weekly services from Australia to Dubai between 01 May 2026 and 31 May 2026. From 1 May, the airline restored Brisbane services, doubled Melbourne to two daily A380 rotations, and resumed Sydney’s nonstop A380. Adelaide and Perth also stepped back up, although Emirates is still running at about 77 per cent of its originally planned schedule on the interim timetable to 15 May.

Etihad has rebuilt to around 92 daily flights from Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi, serving roughly 80 destinations after dropping to about 40 daily flights at the height of the conflict in early March.

Connections to Europe

For those looking to travel onwards to Europe, significant connections have returned to capacity.

Under Emirates’ interim May schedule, Paris Charles de Gaulle increases to 21 weekly from 17, Rome Fiumicino moves from 10 to 14 weekly, and Madrid expands to 14 weekly, with the A380 service returning.

London Heathrow lifts to six daily A380 services from five, Manchester grows to 21 weekly with A380s on two daily rotations, Frankfurt restores its A380, and Munich doubles to two daily 777-300ER services.

With Emirates heavily rebuilding on its European network and Etihad already operating across roughly 80 destinations from Abu Dhabi, Australians can feel at ease with their upcoming European holidays flying via the UAE.

If you would like to learn more about the development, please contact one of our airfare specialists. View our Emirates and Etihad Airways deals to also learn more.