Americans in the Middle East are scrambling to find flights back to the United States after the United States and Israel launched military strikes against Iran over the weekend, disrupting regional airspace.The U.S. State Department urged U.S. citizens in several countries, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Qatar, to “leave immediately.” However, many travelers said they had difficulty leaving due to flight cancellations, airspace closures and limited assistance from diplomatic missions.The travel chaos has left thousands of Americans unexpectedly caught in a rapidly escalating situation, with President Donald Trump saying the attacks were aimed at neutralizing what he called an “imminent threat” from Iran.
Flights diverted amid rising tensions
American traveler Carissa, a dating coach with more than 180,000 followers on TikTok, shared her experience of being stuck while traveling in the Middle East. “I just escaped the madness that was going on in the Middle East,” she said in a video about her trip.Karissa said she took a 14-hour flight to Abu Dhabi from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City on Friday night.“I left JFK on Friday night for a 14-hour flight to Abu Dhabi,” she explained. “While we were in the air, everything started going down in Iran.”Passengers began paying attention to breaking news during the flight, which heightened tensions on board. “You could tell everyone on the plane was starting to panic because people were reading the news,” she said. “Maybe 30-45 minutes before we were supposed to land in Abu Dhabi, the pilot came over the intercom and said, ‘We’re going to make an emergency stop in Cairo, Egypt.'”
Passengers wait in Cairo
The plane eventually landed in Cairo, where it sat on the tarmac for about an hour while airline staff tried to determine whether the passengers could return to New York that evening.After disembarking, passengers were left inside the airport with little information.“Nobody knew what was going on,” Karissa recalled. “People were yelling at the poor flight attendants, demanding to know when they were going to Abu Dhabi.”Airport officials eventually issued temporary visas and bused the passengers to a nearby hotel for the night. Despite these arrangements, Carissa said passengers still had not received a clear update on when flights would resume. She said there was “no information” about the circumstances or how long they might stay in Egypt.
A costly last-minute escape
Fearing that the regional conflict might expand, Karissa decided to book her own flight home. “I booked a new flight on another airline back to Boston via Switzerland,” she said, explaining that it was her only destination option in the United States.“It cost me $2,000 because it was last minute,” she added. “By that time, I was worried that Egypt might get involved, and like you never know — it all happened so fast.” She eventually managed to return safely to the United States and later said she felt lucky when she left.According to the U.S. State Department, more than 9,000 U.S. citizens have been evacuated from the area, including more than 300 from Israel. U.S. officials said they were organizing military aircraft and charter flights to help remaining Americans leave the Middle East. While some flights have resumed in cities such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi, disruptions continue as airlines adjust routes and airspace restrictions remain in place.
