UAE travel update: What travellers need to know about Emirates, Etihad flights to US
US airports work through thousands of delays and cancellations after communications failure
DUBAI – UAE flights to the United States have resumed following a major air traffic communications outage that disrupted operations at several airports across the country on Monday.
Emirates and Etihad services to key US destinations, including New York and Boston, remained on schedule on September 22, although travellers may still encounter delays as airlines work through the backlog. The disruption affected thousands of flights, particularly across the US Northeast, after a failure involving communications systems used by air traffic controllers.
For travellers flying from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to the US, current flight information remains important as airport operations gradually return to normal. Flight tracking data showed Emirates and Etihad services continuing to New York and Boston on Tuesday, with no confirmed cancellations among the monitored flights early in the day.
UAE-US flights
Emirates flight EK203 departed Dubai for New York's John F Kennedy International Airport at 3.02am on September 22, slightly later than its scheduled 2.40am departure. The service was operated by an Airbus A380.
Other Emirates services remained listed on the schedule, including EK201 from Dubai to JFK and EK209 from Dubai to Newark via Athens.
Etihad's EY1 departed Abu Dhabi for JFK at 2.39am, with an estimated arrival in New York at 9.09am local time. The airline also listed EY7 from Abu Dhabi to Boston, scheduled to depart at 9am UAE time and arrive at 2.40pm local time.
The services followed confirmation from both airlines that their US operations were continuing as scheduled despite the wider disruption. However, passengers should check their individual flight status before travelling to the airport because delays can continue after a major network disruption has been resolved.
US flights disruption
The disruption began on Monday when a primary telecommunications circuit serving a Federal Aviation Administration facility failed. When the system attempted to switch to a backup connection, authorities discovered that a fibre-optic line in New Jersey had also been severed during construction activity.
The communications failure affected air traffic control operations in the Northeast. Newark Liberty International Airport experienced particularly severe disruption, with commercial traffic halted for several hours. JFK, LaGuardia, Philadelphia International Airport and Boston were also affected.
Check your flight status with your airline and real-time airport updates at https://t.co/3jOGxjFDaf https://t.co/JYpKUkOuQC
— The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) September 21, 2026
By the end of the day, around 7,000 flights across the US had been delayed or cancelled. More than 1,400 disruptions were recorded at the three major New York-area airports.
Newark recorded more than 600 cancellations during the disruption, while Philadelphia also experienced hundreds of delays and cancellations. The outage left airlines managing aircraft rotations, passenger rebookings and queues created by the sudden interruption to normal operations.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy later confirmed that the affected telecommunications lines had been repaired. The FAA subsequently resumed normal operations, allowing airports and airlines to begin clearing accumulated traffic.
What travelers should do
Passengers travelling between the UAE and the US should continue checking their airline's latest flight status before leaving for Dubai International Airport or Zayed International Airport.
Even when a flight is operating, travellers may face delays caused by aircraft and crew rotations or congestion at the US arrival airport. Those connecting onwards from New York, Boston or other affected airports should also check the status of their connecting flight separately.