US reduces evacuation flights of its citizens from UAE

The US Department of State announced that it will reduce evacuation flights from the Middle East due to a decrease in demand by US citizens to depart.

Assistant US Secretary of State Dylan Johnson said in a statement that the Department contacted approximately 9,000 Americans in the UAE and offered them travel via government-chartered flights, but most preferred to remain in the UAE or book commercial flights instead of using government evacuation flights, which led to some flights departing with empty seats.

Johnson clarified that daily updates on evacuation operations in the UAE will be temporarily suspended due to reduced demand, with new updates to be issued when needed.

This comes as part of the State Department's reduction of chartered flights and ground transportation operations after an improvement in the availability of commercial flights in the region, where the number of seats on government flights now exceeds actual demand.

The US Department of State has successfully repatriated more than 43,000 American citizens to the United States from the Middle East since February 28, 2026.