Anyone else in Dubai on holiday? AIBU to be panicking with all the flights cancelled?

[tiantian1005]

Not sure when we can go home..anyone has managed to for example drive to nearby countries and fly from there?

🥱

People say they want to know how we feel and then tell us they don’t believe the responses 🤷‍♀️

The hostility coming from much of the British media and on here towards British expats in the UAE has been something else and made a hard time even harder.

Are people suggesting that some posters are paid or something?

is that what they meant by skin in the game? 🤣

At almost 70 and as a mum and grandma to loads I’m no Mata Hari. But thank you for helping me realise what they are thinking - their tunnel vision is worse than I thought.

Sorry, this was meant to be a reply to @Cluckingchicken

@Rattletattles
I have family there too. Their experience is the complete opposite to your family’s.

@smokingdogs some posters are saying it is pretty much business as usual, so not sure why comments can be making a situation harder than it is, when for some it doesn’t seem hard at all

Goodnight all. And thank you for the laugh. Ive really enjoyed getting an insight into the minds of some of those who consider themselves experts on the current goings on here. I hope they don’t give up their day jobs anytime soon.

My teen was there visiting friends, coming home via Muscat, and she has been terrified.

A building in The Marina was hit about 30 mins ago, no alert was sounded in advance. I think people will be less nonchalant now.

Ah you’re ther and also posting about how safe it is. Makes sense.

Iran's plan I think is to decimate the economies of surrounding countries. It would appear that Iran doesn't have the capability or ordnance to launch all out conflict so this is the way they will do it. Bit by bit Gulf countries like UAE and others will be attacked with drone assisted missiles. Very little warning. Devastating consequences that will put the fear of god into people as the days go by. Doesn't require that much armoury to achieve a climate of fear.

Or maybe it's all made up and there are no attacks on neighbouring countries, or on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, and so on. I know which one I think is happening.

I couldn’t resist coming back for more of a laugh and you’ve certainly made it worthwhile.

If a person is posting and saying that life is going on as normal where did you think they were posting from? Did you really think they were commenting from the UK like the self styled experts on the thread who’ve probably never been near the Gulf.

I’m actually dismayed by the people here who are so blinkered in their hatred of this part of the world that they think people are being paid to post here and lie about the situation on the ground, and if not that they’re being told what to say.

As I said earlier, I hope none of you give up your day jobs soon.

I have close friends in Qatar and they say much the same - that it’s mostly like Covid times in the sense that they try to stay in, but you can go to the shops, get deliveries, go to appointments etc. the alerts and news are scary but 99% of the time it is calm and normal. They get good information from the government and are being well protected so are pleased on that front. There’s zero reason for them to lie to me and it all fits what what I see elsewhere about life in Qatar right now.

@CreamolaFoam26
None of this is remotely humorous. I have no idea why you’re laughing - even hypothetically.

I think it’s the line that’s trotted out about being looked after very well by the government. It’s a bit odd to British people because we’d no doubt be slating our government in a similar situation! What are the government actually doing to look after you out there? Are they delivering food? Offering people shelter? Surely it’s the military rather than the politicians that are intercepting the drones. It doesn’t make sense.

Ive seen the British consulate in UAE’s social media posts asking for footage etc not to be shared and reminding people it’s illegal to do so. So its not a stretch to see that this same one line about being looked after by the government is something that’s being ordered.

To clarify, I’m not a Dubai hater, in fact I think it’s a fabulous place and if I could have got a job out there I would have gone in a heartbeat. We holiday there regularly.

That’s certainly the impression I’m getting from people living in the UAE. They are frightened/terrified but getting on with life as best they can. There’s not really much else they can do. The latest I’ve heard is that alarms were not sounded in Dubai until after the attacks this morning or this afternoon and I think not before the strike which hit 23 Marina Towers about an hour ago, either.

I am more interested in whether the British Government is going to lower VAT on this vastly inflated oil price now or whether they are just going to pocket it in a self serving manner. And what that means for inflation and cost of living.

That's like asking if people in horror movies will go down to that dark basement to see what the baby crying noise is, or will use brains and stay upstairs🙈
We all know 100% which one will happen

Would pay towards the repatriation flights that the UK tax payer is going to have to fund anyway.

(I’m all for these being charged to those having to leave UAE)

That's a really good point. LIke COVID times. Perhaps the resilience of that still remains.

So far there have been a grand total of 2 repatriation flights provided by the British government from Oman. I read somewhere that people were being charged £350 for a seat. Ok that’s probably half the price of the cheapest seat on Emirates but still not entirely free. The government is offering no help to British citizens to make the overland journey to Oman. Not an easy journey to arrange or make. The Turkish government is laying on coaches to take its citizens overland from Doha to Riyadh. I have t heard of the British government doing anything similar.

So far there have been a grand total of 2 repatriation flights provided by the British government from Oman.

Yep, 2 or maybe 3 now, something like that...

I think some have visions of HMG flying hundreds of thousands of Brits to the UK at the tax payers expense but personally I doubt it.

The RAF certainly hasn't got much if any spare capacity, BA has a bit of spare since their normal Gulf services aren't running so I think they've done some flights out of Muscat, but apart from odd charter that'll be about it, and of course however it's done @HMG do charge.

But what would you do? You have to get on with things at some point. You can’t just stop everything and live on fresh air. And you can’t just tootle off and start living in another country.

@notimagain yes. Just seen on sky news that there is a plan for one Charter plane to go to the UAE next week. It almost seems a bit performative. They might as well just be honest and say look you are on your own but give people practical and detailed advice and guidance about how to arrange transport to cross land borders either into Saudi (if in Doha) or Muscat if in UAE. If that’s an option people want to consider

I think the arabs are going to need to sort out the flights mess re safe routes to the airport. Individuals sort out their own flights as they become available.

Yes agreed. At the moment people are trying to arrange taxis/cars themselves. I’ve only heard the one case about the Turkish government arranging transport for their citizens. I don’t know what happens at the borders as taxi drivers can’t cross but people are managing it somehow.