dailynewsnblog
Airline stock around the world has taken a tumble following the widespread airspace closures that have hampered Middle Eastern aviation. Two of the most affected airports, 
Dubai International Airport and 
Doha Hamad International Airport, have seen more than 11,000 flights cancelled, displacing thousands of passengers around the globe.
Following the rising geopolitical tension in the region, airline stocks have taken a dip on Monday, after airlines were forced to cancel or reroute thousands of flights, which, as a result, have affected airlines not only in the Middle East but around the world. 
United Airlines, the largest international carrier in the United States, as reported by CNBC, saw its stock drop almost 4%.
An Ongoing Geopolitical Situation
While international travel has previously seen strong demand and growth following the COVID-19 Pandemic, the international air transport sector is highly volatile, with such tension now escalated to the boiling point, quickly crippling worldwide aviation operations, and as a result, share-market volatility.
Emirates and Qatar Airways have primarily hit the headlines for their operations effectively being grounded due to the conflict. Closer to the United States, US carriers are also starting to feel the pinch. Across the last week, 11,000 flights to and from the Middle East were cancelled, and while neither 
American Airlines nor 
Delta Air Lines fly to the region, their stock dropped according to Business Insider. European and Asian carriers are also feeling it, with stock prices also taking a dip, with major carriers’ stock drops detailed below:
|
Airline |
Stock % Drop |
|---|---|
|
American Airlines |
6% |
|
United Airlines |
4% |
|
Delta Air Lines |
3.5% |
|
IAG (British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, Vueling, LEVEL) |
5% |
|
Air France-KLM |
9% |
|
Lufthansa |
6% |
|
Qantas |
5% |
|
Cathay Pacific |
5% |
|
Singapore Airlines |
5% |
|
Japan Airlines |
5% |
Middle Eastern carriers, 
Emirates, 
Etihad Airways, and 
Qatar Airways, are all owned completely by their respective governments, which means that they are not publicly listed.
An Important Aviation Corridor
As reported by the New York Times, the escalating conflict resulted in some governments shutting down major international airlines, Emirates and Qatar Airways. These two carriers provide an extensive network of flights connecting the likes of Australasia to Europe, Africa, and North/South America. It is estimated that around 660,000 passengers travel through the Middle East every day.
The Middle East is an important aviation corridor, primarily due to closed Russian airspace, sending airlines south of the world’s largest country and primarily over the Caucasus and Middle Eastern countries. This conflict and closure of airspace over Iran have seen airlines scrambling to reroute, and many thousands of flights being cancelled entirely.
The weekend strikes on Iran by the United States have seen retaliation across the region. While the US President Trump believes that these attacks may last up to five weeks, this has sent oil prices surging up in cost, and seen shipments of oil through the usually busy Strait of Hormuz reduced to a ‘trickle’. Oil prices are now up 13% when compared to the same time last week.
Middle East Airspace Plunges Into Chaos After US-Israel Strikes On Iran
Eight countries and counting have shut their airspace to all flights.
A Cost Of $22.6 Billion
Stock shave tumbled as markets opened on Monday, with Reuters suggesting that more than $22.6 billion was shredded across major carriers. It is expected that weeks of travel disruption could continue following the US. Iran and Israel conflict. Ongoing costs for airlines, including the rising fuel costs, rerouting, and flight cancellation expenses, are set to impact airlines’ bottom lines.
While the aviation scene remains subdued in the Middle East, the effects are being felt elsewhere as other airlines report flights operating at 100% capacity, as displaced passengers look to alternative options to travel to their final destination. Airlines are gradually looking to resume services to the region, with Flightradar24 showing Emirates operating limited flights from Dubai today, with the first flight, EK500, departing at 9:12 to Mumbai. Flydubai has also resumed its first flight, flying to Warsaw, leaving at 1:00 am local time.
A silver lining for Emirates is that a number of its fifth-freedom routes have continued to operate, with flight data showing the airline’s Sydney to Christchurch Airbus A380 service has continued to operate, and its Athens to Newark service operated on the 1st and 2nd of March; however is currently shown as cancelled for March 3rd.
