There are currently no Swiss aircraft taking off to Dubai or vice versa. A majority of the stranded crews were able to leave the region (symbolic image).Image: KEYSTONE
Lufthansa is bringing its employees home from the danger zones in the wake of the Iran war. Repatriation flights for tourists are currently not planned.
March 2, 2026, 4:00 p.mMar 2, 2026, 4:22 p.m
The airline Swiss is reacting to the outbreak of war in Iran and the danger in the Middle East. “We imposed our highest security level in Dubai on Saturday, level three,” says Swiss operations manager Oliver Buchhofer in an interview with “View”. This means: “The crews were no longer allowed to leave the hotel and they must be reachable so that we can evacuate them quickly whenever possible.”
The airline has now evacuated most of its employees on site. “It quickly became clear that flying from Dubai was not an option,” says Buchhofer. Because the airspace and the airport are closed. So going to Muscat was the only option. “But even then you don’t just order a taxi quickly. This is much more complex and takes time.” Only when they were sure that they could successfully get the crew out did Swiss send them off.
“Fortunately, we can work together in the Lufthansa Group, so an Austrian Airlines plane from Vienna picked up various crews in Oman.” They landed in Vienna that night. According to Buchhofer, two crew members are currently staying in a hotel in Muscat with their relatives. “We are urgently looking for options for them to leave the country.” The Swiss mechanics stationed in Tel Aviv are also being brought home.
Why no repatriation flights?
When “Blick” asked whether Swiss could also repatriate Swiss citizens, Buchhofer said: “The past few years show that we have repeatedly carried out repatriations, be it from crisis areas or during the pandemic.” Swiss did this, for example, in Tel Aviv and once in Uzbekistan when Swiss people were evacuated from Afghanistan. However, such missions would always take place on behalf of the EDA Department of Foreign Affairs. “So the federal government would have to take action. We would then check whether the situation is safe enough for flights to the area.” However, there are currently no concrete plans.
Stranded: Nothing has been working at Dubai airport since yesterday.Image: AP
In general, rehabilitation flights would require major preparations. “If the FDFA wants it and our analyzes show that it is safe and feasible, we will fly to Dubai. “But that only works if the risk can be assessed and calculated,” says Buchhofer. “If rockets are flying all the time, we can’t do that.” In addition, the aircraft must be able to be refueled and handled, for example. An alternative would be to fly to another airport nearby, for example in Oman.
As of Monday afternoon, Swiss had canceled all flights to Dubai up to and including March 4th and to Tel Aviv up to and including March 8th. (aargauerzeitung.ch)