More than 4,200 flights delayed or canceled across Asia and the Middle East

Disruption overview

A widespread flight disruption on 25 May 2026 affected major hubs across Asia and parts of the Middle East, with around 4,230 flights disrupted overall, including about 530 cancellations and more than 3,700 delays. Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport were at the center of the pressure, while Chengdu, Tokyo, Bengaluru, Jeddah, Riyadh, and Amman also faced knock-on disruption that left travelers dealing with long lines, repeated schedule changes, and limited rebooking options. Because congestion, local weather, and tight aircraft and crew availability all appear to have played a role, passenger rights may vary depending on the route and whether the disruption was within the airline’s control.

Disruption details

A severe flight disruption on 25 May 2026 hit major hubs across Asia and parts of the Middle East. Around 4,230 flights were disrupted within 24 hours, with around 530 canceled and more than 3,700 delayed, leaving hundreds of thousands of travelers stranded or running late.

The heaviest pressure was reported at Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, while Chengdu Airport, Tokyo Haneda Airport, Tokyo Narita International Airport, Kempegowda International Airport, King Abdulaziz International Airport, King Khalid International Airport, and Queen Alia International Airport also struggled to keep traffic moving.

The disruption appears to have come from several problems hitting at once: heavy late-May schedules, limited aircraft and crew availability, local weather issues, and other operational bottlenecks. That mix made it harder for airlines and airports to recover once early delays started building.

Mainland China was at the center of the problem. Airlines there had already been trimming rotations as fuel costs rose and capacity stayed tight, and local weather issues seem to have pushed already stretched networks into wider knock-on delays. Cancellation rates at the two Shanghai airports were reported to be well above recent averages.

Tokyo’s two airports then struggled to bring later long-haul departures back on time after the morning wave slipped behind schedule. In Bengaluru, tightly timed domestic-to-international connections were hit by late inbound flights, while hub traffic through Jeddah, Riyadh, and Amman created more missed connections for travelers heading onward to Europe or Africa.

No single carrier accounted for most of the cancellations. Instead, smaller blocks of changed flights across many airlines added up to a region-wide ripple effect. Among the carriers most visibly affected were China Eastern Airlines, All Nippon Airways, Batik Air, and Akasa Air.

China Eastern showed an unusually high share of cancellations and late arrivals on both domestic and international services. All Nippon Airways faced staggered delays and some cancellations on regional routes linking Tokyo with China and Southeast Asia. Batik Air reduced some short-haul sectors around Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur to protect longer services, while Akasa Air and other Indian carriers retimed flights around Bengaluru and Mumbai to ease pressure on crews and ground teams.

For many travelers, one of the hardest parts was the uncertainty. Departure estimates were revised again and again, and rebooking was difficult because high seasonal demand left few spare seats. Consumer advocates also renewed calls for clearer communication and more flexibility on rebooking and refunds, especially for trips that crossed more than one country.

If your journey was affected, your rights may depend on both the cause of the disruption and the route you were flying. When a delay or cancellation is within an airline’s control, passengers on EU-bound or EU-origin flights may have rights under EC 261. But if weather or third-party air traffic restrictions caused the problem, compensation may not apply.

Even when compensation isn’t clear, that doesn’t mean you’re without support. Airlines may still need to offer care such as meals, refreshments, accommodation, rerouting, or a refund depending on your flight and the circumstances. If you want to check where you stand, you can use AirHelp’s free flight checker to see whether compensation or other support may apply.

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