India, March 1 -- The sudden escalation in hostilities between Iran, Israel and the United States has thrown global aviation into chaos, with airports shutting down, airspace closures and hundreds of flights cancelled or diverted.

Following the start of the strikes, flight maps revealed that the airspace around Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel, and Bahrain was essentially empty. Iran responded with missiles.

There were reports of explosions in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, important east-west travel hubs, and Qatar, the location of the largest U.S. military facility in the region.

In the United Arab Emirates, authorities confirmed that all operations at Dubai's two busiest airports, Dubai International Airport (DXB) and Dubai World Central - Al Makto...