British Airways has announced the suspension of its London Heathrow to Abu Dhabi route due to ongoing reliability issues with engines on its Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet.
The suspension will run from March 30 to October 25, 2025, affecting the current daily service to the UAE capital.
The airline only resumed the Abu Dhabi route in April this year following a four-year break during the pandemic.
Passengers affected by the suspension have several rebooking options available to them.
Abu Dhabi is popular with UK tourists
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Those with flights booked between March 30 and October 25, 2025, can choose to fly with British Airways to Dubai instead.
Alternatively, customers can rebook with partner airlines Etihad or Qatar Airways, though travel must be within 14 days of their original booking date.
British Airways is also offering rebooking provisions, including the ability to change between London Heathrow and Gatwick airports, or between Abu Dhabi and Dubai destinations.
Passengers can also choose to reroute via Doha or Dubai. Full refunds are available for cancelled flights under standard carriage conditions.
In relation to its aircraft problems when cancelling its Kuala Lumpur route, British Airways released the following statement.
It said: “We are disappointed that we have had to make further changes to our schedule as we continue to experience delays to the delivery of engines and parts from Rolls-Royce; particularly in relation to the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines fitted to our 787 aircraft.
“We have taken this action because we do not believe the issue will be solved quickly, and we want to offer our customers the certainty they deserve for their travel plans. We have apologised to those affected and are able to offer the vast majority a flight on the same day with British Airways or one of our partner airlines.
“We continue to work closely with Rolls-Royce to ensure the company is aware of the impact its issues are having on our schedule and customers, and seek reassurance of a prompt and reliable solution.”
The route has been suspended from March 30 to October 25 2025
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Travel agents can manage rebookings through the Global Distribution System.
This is not the only route that British Airways has suspended due to an issue.
In November, British Airways suspended flights to Bahrain and Kuwait due to the same technical complications.
Following public pressure, the airline has partially reversed its decision on the Bahrain route, committing to operate three weekly flights this upcoming summer.
The carrier has also significantly reduced frequencies to Miami, Hong Kong and the elimination of flights to Beijing.
