Government rescue flight delayed as Britons stranded in Middle East conflict

The first government-chartered evacuation flight for British nationals stranded in the Middle East failed to depart on Wednesday night after operational problems prevented passengers from boarding in time.

Home Office minister Alex Norris said the aircraft, due to leave Muscat in Oman, would now attempt to depart for the UK on Thursday. He did not give a confirmed departure time.

Speaking to LBC, Norris said the delay was caused by logistical difficulties during the boarding process. The plane had a limited window in which it could take off and the process was not completed in time.

The evacuation effort comes as tens of thousands of British citizens seek assistance after the conflict between Iran, Israel and the United States escalated across the region.

Government figures show around 138,000 UK nationals have registered for support, including 112,000 in the United Arab Emirates. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said roughly 1,000 people have already returned to Britain on commercial flights, while additional chartered flights are expected to leave the region later this week.

The widening conflict began after coordinated US and Israeli strikes on Iranian targets a week ago. Iran has since launched retaliatory missile attacks on American military infrastructure across the Middle East, drawing several Gulf states into the crisis.

Major transport hubs have also been affected. Dubai, the world’s busiest international airport for passenger traffic and a key transit point for travellers between Europe and Asia, has experienced disruption following Iranian missile strikes in the United Arab Emirates over the weekend.

Hotels including Fairmont The Palm and the Burj Al Arab were reported damaged along with sections of Dubai International Airport.

The disruption has left many travellers stranded in Gulf states during stopovers that were meant to last only a few hours.

One British traveller caught in the crisis is Faye Morton from Horsforth in Leeds, who had been travelling to Seoul to meet a friend when flights were halted.

Speaking on BBC Radio Leeds, Morton described the experience as deeply distressing.

“I’m struggling, I’m not going to lie,” she said. “I spend most of my days crying, just shaking. I can’t eat, can’t sleep. I just really want out of here to see my family.”

Morton said she had been staying in a hotel in Qatar, where authorities advised residents and visitors to shelter indoors after Iranian drones struck two natural gas facilities in the country.

Qatar said it had also shot down two Iranian fighter jets earlier in the week as tensions escalated across the Gulf.

Morton told the programme that missile strikes had been audible from her hotel.

“I’ve been waking up most nights to the sound of missiles, and they’ve been shaking the hotel a bit, which is utterly terrifying.”

She said she had not left the hotel since arriving and felt unclear about how British citizens outside Oman would be able to leave the region.

“We’re nowhere near Oman,” she said. “We just need some view that there is a way out, because right now it doesn’t feel that way.”

The evacuation programme has also prompted debate in Westminster over whether taxpayers should fund rescue flights for British citizens who live abroad, particularly those based in low-tax jurisdictions.

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey told Parliament that British nationals who relocate overseas to avoid paying UK taxes should still contribute financially to national defence.

“Since we rightly expect our armed forces to protect British citizens around the world in a crisis, it’s only right that tax exiles start paying taxes to fund the armed forces like the rest of us,” he said.

Government officials have said further charter flights from the Middle East are being arranged as the security situation develops.

British nationals are advised to monitor official travel guidance issued by the UK government.

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