Flight EK414 from Dubai touched down at Sydney’s Kingsford Smith Airport on Wednesday night to the kind of silence that comes after a very long exhale. Families pressed against the barriers in the arrivals hall. A few people were crying. One woman just stood there with her eyes closed and her hands pressed flat against the glass.
It was the first commercial flight from Dubai to Australia since war broke out in the Middle East. For the more than 230 Australians on board, it was the end of a week most of them never want to repeat. For the tens of thousands still stuck in hotel rooms and airport terminals across the Gulf, it was something harder to name — a glimpse of what they were still waiting for.
“Once you knew you were out of the danger zone, you could feel the mood lift,” said Lucy Kenyon, one of the passengers on the flight. “Everyone clapped when we landed and so it was really good.”
It was a small moment of relief in the middle of a very large and very complicated crisis. And within 24 hours of that plane landing, a troubling new detail had emerged that threatened to make the wait even longer for those still in the queue.
How the first flights home came together
The UAE government announced it would open emergency air corridors and expected up to 60 flights to depart on the Wednesday after hostilities began, following a partial resumption of flight operations on Tuesday. It was a significant step — but a limited one. The UAE reopened its airspace in fragments, prioritising certain routes and carriers. Most of the surrounding region remained closed: Israel, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain all kept their skies shut. Jordan was partially open. Egypt and Saudi Arabia remained alternative exit points for those willing to make the overland journey.
RMIT University aviation expert Justin Brownjohn told ABC News that major airlines like Qantas and Emirates have specialist departments within their operations control centres that maintain real-time connections to national security information providers and embassy networks. “It’s not just one person in one team saying, ‘Okay, it’s okay to fly,'” he said. “All of these things feed into a risk profile.” It was that layered, institutional risk-assessment capability that allowed Emirates to resume limited flights from Dubai even as chaos persisted across most of the region.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong confirmed that four government-facilitated flights had departed the region by the end of the week, with four more planned in the following 24 hours. She said Australia had been in direct contact with UAE officials and airlines and was working continuously to secure more capacity. A C-17A Globemaster and a KC-30A military aircraft remained positioned nearby as contingency options if commercial capacity proved insufficient.
Abu Dhabi was also added as a new departure hub, giving stranded Australians an additional option beyond Dubai. Six DFAT Crisis Response Teams were now on the ground across the region, helping to coordinate logistics and prioritise the most vulnerable cases — including elderly travellers, people with medical conditions, and those with young children.
The empty seats problem
Then came the uncomfortable revelation. Reports emerged — confirmed by the government — that hundreds of seats on repatriation flights were going unfilled. Planes were departing with rows of empty seats, while the official manifests showed the flights as full.
The explanation, once it became clear, was frustratingly human. Many Australians, desperate to get home, had booked seats on multiple flights simultaneously as a precaution — as anyone stranded in a conflict zone and watching bookings disappear in real time might reasonably do. Others had found alternative routes home through Oman, Saudi Arabia or Egypt, and had departed without notifying the airline that had their original booking. The result was a significant mismatch between seats allocated and seats actually occupied.
Penny Wong did not hide her frustration. “I’m disappointed with that,” she said, “so we are seeking to work even more closely with the airlines to try and coordinate that.” She urged every stranded Australian to hold their seat, stay in contact with their carrier, and — if circumstances changed — cancel their booking rather than simply not showing up.
“We want every seat filled,” she said. “Every empty seat is a seat another Australian can’t take.”
Who is coming home, and how
The emerging picture of Australia’s repatriation effort involves several parallel streams. Emirates and Etihad have been operating government-facilitated flights from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to Sydney. Military aircraft are on standby for more complex extractions if needed. Alternative land routes through Oman and Saudi Arabia to airports in those countries — then onward to Australia — are being used for those who cannot secure a seat on a direct departure.
Australians in Israel face a different and more acute challenge. Israeli airspace remains fully closed. The Australian embassy in Tel Aviv has a Crisis Response Team on the ground and is in contact with residents sheltering in place. The government has said it is working with Israeli authorities on options, but has not publicly confirmed a specific plan or timeline for Australians in Israel who wish to leave.
For those in Lebanon — where DFAT now advises “do not travel” — options are extremely limited. The government has urged Australians in Lebanon to shelter in place, limit movements, and register immediately with the crisis portal if they have not done so.
What the government wants you to do right now
DFAT’s message this week has been consistent and urgent. If you are an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or immediate family member currently in Israel, Iran, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon or Jordan — register through the emergency portal at smartraveller.gov.au immediately. Keep your registration updated with your current location and contact details. Do not cancel booked flights without notifying the airline. Document all expenses and keep receipts.
If you need emergency consular assistance and cannot reach your nearest embassy or consulate, call the 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre on +61 2 6261 3305 from overseas, or 1300 555 135 from Australia.
Smartraveller now advises Australians against travel to Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar and the UAE. Travel to Jordan, Oman and Saudi Arabia should be reconsidered. Iran, Iraq, Palestine, Syria and Yemen remain on the “do not travel” list — as they have been for some time.
The bigger question
Beyond the immediate logistics, a harder question is starting to be asked. Australia has long been criticised for the gap between the expectations Australians have of their government’s ability to help them abroad, and the actual resources and legal frameworks DFAT has available to deliver that help. The Smartraveller website has for years urged Australians travelling to high-risk regions to purchase comprehensive travel insurance, register their plans, and make their own contingency plans. This week, many of the Australians who did exactly that still found themselves stranded.
For now, the flights are beginning to come. More are scheduled. The queue is long, but it is moving. And at Sydney Airport on Wednesday night, when the wheels of EK414 finally touched Australian tarmac, at least two hundred and thirty-something people got to exhale.
The rest of the country is still waiting for its turn.
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