Hyderabad: The ongoing Iran-Israel conflict is now impacting travel beyond West Asia, with airfares to several international destinations, particularly in Europe, witnessing a sharp surge.Passengers flying out of Hyderabad to cities such as London and Frankfurt are facing steep fare hikes as airlines reroute flights and reduce services passing through affected airspace. On Tuesday, one-way ticket prices from Hyderabad to London ranged between Rs 65,000 and Rs 90,000, nearly double the usual fare for this sector. Fares to destinations in Germany jumped by 200% to 300% compared to regular prices, travel agents said.
Similarly, long-haul routes to the US have also become more expensive. Flights from Hyderabad to New York via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, were priced at around Rs 1.5 lakh on Tuesday. Travel agents said the spike was driven by the sudden shift of passengers to alternative transit hubs, as several West Asia routes remain disrupted. Temporary airspace closures, operational suspensions, and flight rerouting are leading to higher ticket prices and longer travel durations.Meanwhile, air connectivity between the UAE and Hyderabad has been severely disrupted, leaving thousands of passengers uncertain about their travel plans. Even flights scheduled over the next few days remain under a cloud, with airlines issuing last-minute cancellations and advisories. The disruption is particularly severe for Hyderabad, which records an average of 5,000 passengers travelling daily between the city and the UAE, its busiest international hub. On Monday alone, more than 50 flights were cancelled at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport.Passengers expressed anxiety over sudden cancellations and difficulty reaching airline customer care. “I have my flight from Hyderabad to Dubai on March 3. The flight status shows it as cancelled. I tried calling the airline multiple times, but the lines were busy. Kindly reschedule my booking,” posted Shariq Siddiqui on X.Similarly, R Suresh, a passenger from the city, said his Dubai–Hyderabad booking for March 3 was cancelled even though the airline’s website showed the flight as operational. “What are the options?” he asked Emirates on social media. In an advisory, IndiGo said the temporary suspension of select international flights operating through parts of the Middle Eastern airspace has been extended.“All flights to North America and Europe will operate per schedule using alternative routings over available airspaces in the Middle East, which is expected to add to the flying times. Additionally, flights to New York (JFK) and Newark (Liberty International) will operate with technical stops at Rome (Fiumicino Airport),” said the spokesperson of Air India.
