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Cathay Pacific extended its cancellation of passenger and cargo flights to and from Dubai and Riyadh until April 30.
The Scandinavian carrier SAS said it will cancel at least 1,000 flights in April after jet fuel prices doubled in 10 days due to the Middle East war, adding to mounting disruption across global aviation.
"Due to recent developments in the Middle East and the closure of certain airspace in the region, Cathay Group has suspended all operations in the Middle East," the company stated in an official statement.
"This includes passenger services to and from Dubai and Riyadh (from Feb. 28 up to and including April 30) as well as freighter services to and from Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) in Dubai. Flights that would normally transit the affected area are being rerouted," the statement added.
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific cited the "volatile situation in the Gulf region" as the reason for extending its flight suspensions to Dubai and Riyadh through the end of April.
Passengers can rebook, reroute, or cancel tickets, the airline said Wednesday.
British Airways on Monday said it was pulling flights to and from Dubai until at least June, among the longest cancellations so far within the aviation industry.
Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest global air transit hub, has faced a series of incidents in recent days. On Monday, the airport's fuel tank was struck, temporarily forcing the airport to close. On Tuesday, airspace across the UAE was shut for several hours.
Cathay Pacific also recently announced new fuel surcharges for most routes, effective March 18, that are roughly double the existing ones. Cathay Group CEO Ronald Lam said fuel costs in March are double the average of the previous two months.
"In March, like ever since the Middle East episode began, the costs of our fuel already doubled," Lam said.
Hong Kong Airlines also raised fuel surcharges on most of its flights.
Cathay said it has observed a "general increase" in demand from other regions, particularly for long-haul flights, with travelers seeking alternatives to routes that rely heavily on Middle Eastern hubs.
The carrier announced additional flights to London to meet increased demand for travel to Europe.
Scandinavian airline SAS said Tuesday it will cancel at least 1,000 flights in April as soaring jet fuel costs hit its operations.
"The price of jet fuel has doubled in 10 days. Even if we try to absorb cost increases as much as possible, this is a shock that directly hits the airline industry," SAS CEO Anko van der Werff told Swedish business daily Dagens Industri.
SAS said it is canceling a few hundred flights in March, mostly domestic routes in Norway, with a small number affecting Sweden and Denmark. More cancellations are expected after Easter, when traffic normally dips.
The carrier operates around 800 flights per day, meaning the cancellations remain "limited in scale," van der Werff said.
"Given the ongoing situation in the Middle East, including the sharp and sudden increase in global fuel prices, we are taking measures to strengthen our resilience," SAS said in a statement.
A barrel of Brent crude has risen to around $100 since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in late February, leading Iran to retaliate against oil installations in several Gulf states.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's hydrocarbon demand normally passes, is effectively closed.
Several airlines, including Air France-KLM, Cathay Pacific, Air India, Qantas, and SAS, have raised fares to reflect higher jet fuel prices, while many have stopped serving destinations in the Middle East over security concerns.
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