*****UPDATE: Emirates has today (February 1) posted the following on its website:
“From February 2, 2021, we will operate passenger flights to Dubai from London Heathrow and Manchester. Customers seeking to leave the UK on these services should ensure that they are authorised to travel under the latest UK government rules, and meet the travel requirements of their final destination.”*****
Emirates and Etihad Airways have confirmed the suspension of all passenger services to the UK “until further notice”, following the addition of the UAE to the UK government’s “red list” of banned destinations.
From 1300 today (Friday January 29), passengers who have been in or transited through the United Arab Emirates, Burundi and Rwanda in the last ten days will no longer be granted access to the UK.
The ban does not apply to British and Irish nationals, or third-country nationals with residence rights in the UK, but exempted travellers will find it increasing difficult to travel to the UK from the UAE from today, with both Emirates and Etihad suspending all passenger flights.
Travellers who are still permitted to fly to the UK from these destinations must currently self-isolate for ten days at home, although plans are in place to enforce mandatory hotel quarantine.
A statement on Emirates’s website confirms that the last flights for the time being to the UK are:
- EK07 from Dubai to London Heathrow
- EK01 from Dubai to London Heathrow
- EK39 from Dubai to Birmingham
- EK27 from Dubai to Glasgow
And the final flights departing the UK for Dubai are:
- EK08 to Dubai from London Heathrow
- EK02 to Dubai from London Heathrow
- EK40 to Dubai from Birmingham
- EK28 to Dubai from Glasgow
Meanwhile Etihad states simply that “From 1pm (GMT) on January 29, all flights to the UK will be suspended”.
The Department for Transport said that “The decision to ban travel from these destinations follows the discovery of a new coronavirus variant, first identified in South Africa, that may have spread to other countries, including the UAE, Burundi and Rwanda”.
It follows a ban on flights to the UK from South Africa and neighbouring countries earlier this month, along with the addition of other destinations to the “red list” including several South and Central American countries, as well as Portugal and Cape Verde.
