BA Middle East Suspension: What It Means for Your Avios Booking
British Airways has suspended all flights to and from Dubai, Doha, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Amman, and Tel Aviv following widespread Gulf airspace closures in early March 2026. The disruption has stranded thousands of passengers and left many more with upcoming bookings in limbo. If you have an Avios redemption, a companion voucher booking, or a cash fare to any of these destinations, here is what you need to know.
What BA has cancelled and until when
British Airways confirmed on 10 March that services to Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai, and Tel Aviv are suspended until later in March, while Abu Dhabi has been cancelled for longer — until later in 2026. A series of repatriation flights operated out of Muscat, Oman helped bring back some stranded passengers, but those rescue rotations have now concluded. BA is continuing to review the situation and will update its website as the position changes.
The key point for anyone with an upcoming booking: do not cancel your own ticket before BA cancels the flight. If you cancel first, you may lose the right to a full refund and fall back on the terms of your fare instead. Wait for BA to formally cancel the flight, then claim.
Your rights when BA cancels your flight
Under UK aviation law (the retained version of EU Regulation 261/2004), when an airline cancels your flight it must offer you either a full refund to your original payment method or a comparable alternative routing at no extra cost. This applies regardless of whether you paid with cash, Avios, or a mix of both. Note that the separate compensation payments under UK261 — up to £520 per person — do not apply here, because the cancellations are caused by extraordinary circumstances (airspace closure due to conflict) outside BA’s control. The right to a refund or rebooking is unaffected by this, but do not expect a compensation payment on top.
| Booking type | What you get when BA cancels |
|---|---|
| Cash booking | Full refund to original payment method, or free rebooking to any BA destination. As of 12 March, BA’s stated deadline for free date changes is travel on or before 29 March — check ba.com directly as these terms are subject to change as the situation evolves |
| Avios redemption (BA-operated) | Full Avios redeposit to your account, plus refund of any taxes and carrier surcharges paid — standard £35pp cancellation fee is waived when BA cancels |
| Avios redemption on a partner carrier (e.g. Qatar Airways, Gulf Air) | Contact BA — not the operating carrier — to process your refund or rebooking. The issuing airline handles all changes on partner awards |
| Companion voucher booking | Avios and companion voucher should both be reinstated when BA cancels. Do not attempt this via Manage My Booking — the BA IT system for companion voucher cancellations is unreliable and often fails to reinstate the voucher online. Call the Executive Club directly to ensure it is properly returned to your account |
| BA Holidays package | Entitled to a full refund of the package cost. BA Holidays bookings are ATOL protected — you are covered even if BA were unable to operate |
Avios redemptions: the cancellation fee waiver
Under normal circumstances, cancelling an Avios booking yourself costs £35 per person (waived for Gold members). When BA cancels the flight, that fee does not apply — you are entitled to your Avios and taxes back in full. If you try to cancel before BA has formally pulled the flight, you will be treated as a voluntary cancellation and the fee may apply.
You can attempt to cancel and rebook via Manage My Booking online. For straightforward cash or Avios bookings, MMB usually works. For companion voucher bookings or partner awards, calling the Executive Club directly is more reliable. Avios typically return to your account within a few days; cash refunds on taxes can take up to two weeks.
The Abu Dhabi situation is different
BA has specifically stated that Abu Dhabi flights are suspended until “later this year” — a much longer horizon than the other routes. If you have an Avios booking to Abu Dhabi in the coming months, you are entitled to a refund under the waiver now. You do not need to wait until your travel date approaches. If the suspension is later lifted and flights resume, BA will notify affected passengers, but you are under no obligation to rebook.
What about travel insurance?
If your BA flight was to a destination where the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office has issued “Do Not Travel” advice, most comprehensive travel insurance policies will cover cancellation claims — this is a standard trigger in most UK policies. Check your policy wording carefully. If BA has cancelled the flight directly, claim from BA first; insurance is the fallback if BA does not make you whole (for example, on non-refundable hotel bookings or car hire at the destination).
Rebooking: what your options are
As of 12 March, BA’s stated terms allow passengers with tickets issued before the suspension to change their flight date free of charge to travel on or before 29 March 2026. These terms are subject to update as the situation develops — check ba.com for the latest position before acting. For Avios holders, rebooking to an alternative destination is not straightforwardly available under these terms in the way it might be for a cash ticket; the practical option for most points bookings is to take the refund and rebook separately once routes resume or an alternative destination is chosen.
If you are due to travel to Dubai, Doha, or Bahrain later in 2026, it is worth waiting to see whether flights resume before requesting a refund — especially if you hold a companion voucher that might be time-limited. If Abu Dhabi is your destination and the suspension runs well into the summer, the practical advice is to take the refund now and rebook separately when the situation clarifies.
The golden rule here is simple: do not cancel before BA does. Once BA formally cancels your flight you are entitled to a full Avios redeposit, full cash refund on taxes and surcharges, and no cancellation fee — regardless of fare type. Companion voucher holders should call rather than use Manage My Booking to ensure the voucher is properly reinstated. For Abu Dhabi specifically, the suspension is open-ended — take the refund now rather than waiting it out.
