Emirates H1 net profit plunges 66% as Iran war rattles Middle East aviation

Published Thu, Nov 5, 2026 · 05:36 PM

[DUBAI] Emirates airline reported a 66 per cent drop in first-half net profit on Thursday (Nov 5) as airspace closures and disruptions caused by the US-Israeli war with Iran hit travel across the Middle East and sent jet fuel prices soaring.

The Dubai-based carrier posted a net profit of 3.3 billion dirhams (US$903 million) for the six months that ended Sep 30, while revenue fell 13 per cent to 56.9 billion dirhams in spite of what it described as a solid contribution from its cargo business and “enduring travel demand across its markets”.

The war has severely disrupted travel across the region in 2026, triggering widespread flight delays, cancellations and diversions as several countries intermittently closed their airspace.

Gulf carriers, among the world’s largest international airlines, have gradually restored operations, but recent attacks on Saudi Arabia by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have clouded prospects for a full recovery.

Operations largely restored, but passenger traffic down

“The first six months of 2026 to 2027 brought significant challenges to Emirates’ operations as intermittent airspace restrictions and closures across the region tested the airline’s operational agility,” Emirates Group, the airline’s Dubai-based parent, said in a statement.

Meanwhile, “government travel advisories reshaped consumer choices and travel flows”, the statement added.

Emirates said it had restored operations across 91 per cent of its network by the end of September, although passenger traffic and capacity remained significantly below levels recorded a year earlier.

It carried a total of 21.8 million passengers during the first half, down 22 per cent from the same period in 2025.

Available seat kilometres – the ​industry’s standard measure of passenger-carrying capacity – fell 17 per cent. Its average passenger seat factor, which measures the proportion of available seats filled by paying passengers, declined to 72 per cent from 79.5 per cent.

War drives up fuel costs

Iran has not carried out any strikes on United Arab Emirates soil since May. The Gulf state did intercept an Iranian drone over its territorial waters in August, however.

The war has also driven up jet fuel prices to roughly twice their pre-war levels, making airlines reluctant to enter into new fuel hedging contracts that allow them to lock in future fuel prices and protect themselves against sudden increases.

Emirates said its fuel costs before hedging gains jumped 60 per cent year on year in the first half, even as overall operating costs, including fuel, declined 2 per cent in line with reduced operations.

Gains of 7.1 billion dirhams from the airline’s fuel price risk management strategy, however, helped cushion the impact of higher prices, limiting the net increase in fuel costs to 13 per cent over the period.

The Emirates Group’s cash position stood at 54.1 billion dirhams at the end of September, down from 59.6 billion dirhams six months earlier, as it tapped its reserves to support business needs, including pre-delivery payments for aircraft and servicing existing debt obligations.

“We’ve weathered challenges before,” said Emirates group chairman and chief executive Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum.

“With our strong cash position and solid foundation built up over the years, the group is well-placed to navigate the headwinds of volatility and high fuel prices,” he said, adding that the group was entering the second half of the financial year with “measured optimism”. REUTERS