A Heston Airlines Airbus A320 arrived in Tallinn carrying 180 passengers, while a second flight, an Airbus A220 operated by AirBaltic, brought another 140 people.

A third flight organized by Estonia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) also landed in Riga early Saturday.

According to Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna (Eesti 200), priority on these flights were given to families with three or more children and travelers with health concerns.

The MFA is organizing flights with three airlines: FlyDubai, AirBaltic and Heston Airlines. Travelers arriving in Riga will be returned to Estonia by bus.

Bookings opened Friday to several additional evacuation flights out of the region. As of Friday evening, the Heston flight departing Dubai on Sunday was already fully booked.

"This evening, one AirBaltic flight will depart from Dubai to Tallinn and one FlyDubai flight to Riga," Tsahkna said Saturday, adding that the sold-out FlyDubai flight to Riga and a Heston flight to Tallinn are scheduled for Sunday.

Travelers must have registered their short-term stay in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on the MFA's Reisi Targalt (Travel Smart) website to qualify.

With regular commercial flights gradually resuming, no additional evacuation flights are currently planned, the minister said.

"However, the situation in the UAE is very dynamic, and we are ready to adjust plans if necessary," he added.

It is also coordinating with European partners and may place citizens on flights organized by other countries. A limited number of seats may also be offered to other EU citizens.

Tsahkna said Estonian citizens currently in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait — along with family members with Estonian residence permits — are being assisted individually in returning home.

MFA: We're monitoring the situation closely

On Saturday morning, the UAE announced all flights in and out of Dubai were canceled until further notice, though airport operations have since resumed.

With renewed drone and missile threats in Iran, the ministry is monitoring the situation on the ground closely, said Kerli Veski, the MFA's deputy secretary general for legal and consular affairs.

"We may have everything prepared, but it's clear that today's and tomorrow's flights could still be delayed," she said.

Estonia has two evacuation flights scheduled to depart Dubai on Saturday: a FlyDubai flight to Riga and an AirBaltic flight to Tallinn.

If Dubai air traffic faces further disruptions, the ministry will consider rerouting Estonian passengers through Muscat as with the first evacuation flight. That option involves a long bus ride to an already overburdened airport, making it far from ideal.

"Right now, we're exploring whether we can still get people out via Dubai or the nearby Al Maktoum International Airport, but we'll need to keep monitoring developments by the hour," Veski said.

Estonian citizens currently in the Middle East are asked to register their short-term stay with the MFA.

Click here for the ministry's latest updates and more details on the evacuation flights.

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