UAE carriers resume operations to Britain

Dubai: Emirates and Etihad Airways have resumed flights to London's Heathrow airport but passengers are being warned to expect further delays and cancellations as freezing weather continues to affect travel in much of Europe.

Emirates is putting on three extra flights out of the UK — from Heathrow, Birmingham and Manchester — to clear the backlog of stranded passengers.

A spokesperson for Emirates said: "All UK airports are now open and Emirates flights in and out of the UK, as well as Emirates' other European destinations, are operating as close to schedule as possible. However, flights may still be affected by the changing weather conditions.

"Emirates customers are advised to check the status of their flights on www.emirates.com for possible changes or delays, before departing for the airport. Flight information will be updated on the website every five minutes. Emirates apologises for any inconvenience caused."

Etihad also resumed operations to London yesterday as Heathrow airport began to accept a limited number of incoming flights. An additional flight to Manchester left at 2pm from Abu Dhabi.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways' Chief Executive Officer, said: "Etihad's operations teams have worked tirelessly since the disruption began and can now implement their plans to ensure our passengers get to their homes and holidays in time for Christmas."

Heathrow airport said it would only operate a limited schedule of departures and arrivals yesterday. "We expect further cancellations and delays in the coming days as airlines move diverted aircraft and crew back to their normal positions," Heathrow airport said in a statement yesterday.

Elsewhere in Europe, there was further disruption at airports in Frankfurt, Paris, Florence and Amsterdam.