There was relief and tearful reunions at Dublin Airport as the first flight from Dubai touched down since the recent crisis in the Middle East. Many passengers had been stranded in the UAE city since last Saturday amid the conflict between Iran, the US and Israel, which caused widespread airspace closures and major flight disruption.
Anna Callaghan from Donegal was overcome to be surprised by her mother Patricia, who had travelled from the north west to greet her. 'We were seeing and hearing bangs and explosions. Last night in particular it was jet after jet after jet going overhead, and then we heard the US Consulate was hit,' she said. 'This is my fourth flight that I rebooked and I didn't think I was going to get out.'
Elaine Gleeson from Limerick welcomed her sister Norita Geary with a balloon and flowers. 'Everyone clapped when the plane landed, and cheered, it was just magic,' Ms Geary said. Gina Quinn from Dublin described being woken by a national alarm in the middle of the night, calling the situation 'very frightening'.
Rob McClean from Greystones, who had been transiting through from India, said he was evacuated from the airport on Saturday night after an explosion. Jimmy O’Connor from Longford, returning from Australia, said: 'We didn't think it would be such a long journey home, but we’re back now safe and sound.'
Alex Anderson, a French-American travelling to Frankfurt, described seeing missile trails from his flight and feeling 'huge relief' to land in Dublin. 'I moved as quickly as I could out of the terminal building, and an hour later it got hit,' he said. 'I wouldn’t say it’s a full-blown warzone like Gaza, but it’s getting close.'
