Ministers and airline executives urge rapid data sharing and unified crisis playbooks to protect regional connectivity and fast-track recovery.
DUBAI, Sept. 16, 2026 : Tourism ministers and aviation leaders gathering in Dubai have called on regional governments to treat commercial air corridors as critical national infrastructure, warning that the Middle East must prepare operational frameworks now for an eventual surge in post-conflict travel.
Speaking at the 33rd Arabian Travel Market at the Dubai World Trade Centre, regional policymakers, global travel platform executives, and airline officials argued that aviation will serve as the primary engine for economic rehabilitation once regional tensions ease. Drawing parallels with the industry’s rapid post-pandemic bounceback, panel participants urged commercial operators and tourism authorities to overhaul emergency data-sharing agreements to prevent long-term route erosion.
Abdul Wahab Teffaha, Secretary General of the Arab Air Carriers’ Organization, said governments must abandon the premise that civil aviation operates as a discretionary sector. Air connectivity, he told delegates on ATM’s Global Stage, functions as an essential national utility on par with traditional physical infrastructure.
The geopolitical instability across the Middle East has disrupted flight corridors and created significant knock-on effects for connected international destinations. Nicola Amanda Bernstein, Minister of Tourism and Culture for Seychelles, revealed that approximately 60 percent of all passenger traffic to the island nation transits through Middle Eastern hubs. The reliance left the Indian Ocean destination vulnerable to sudden schedule disruptions, forcing authorities to diversify visitor source markets while negotiating revised frequency arrangements with Gulf carriers.
In Lebanon, where transport links face acute operational pressures, cross-sector integration remains an urgent priority. Lebanese Tourism Minister Laura El Khazen Lahoud called for structured partnerships between civil aviation authorities, airlines, and regional tourism ministries to pool live demand metrics. Transparent data exchanges, she noted, are critical to aligning actual flight capacity with ground demand during operational disruptions.
Online travel providers are similarly pushing for harmonized operational playbooks. Schubert Lou, Chief Executive Officer of Trip.com, told delegates that commercial platforms and state regulators require pre-agreed crisis contingency steps. Establishing uniform responses to specific geopolitical scenarios, Lou said, allows carriers and booking platforms to execute route adjustments and customer protections without bureaucratic delays.
Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME for event organizer RX Global, said the sector’s performance over the past six months demonstrated institutional resilience despite sustained geopolitical head-winds.
Running through Sept. 17 under the theme “Travel 2040: Navigating High-Tech Horizons,” ATM 2026 features dedicated showcases on artificial intelligence, algorithmic dispatching, and borderless transit, with industry stakeholders warning that digital connectivity must reinforce physical aviation links to withstand future regional shocks.
