Over 30 Flights Canceled at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi and Jakarta Airports

(BANGKOK, THAILAND) More than 30 flights were cancelled across Suvarnabhumi Airport and Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on October 28, 2025, stranding hundreds of travelers, triggering long delays and confusion, and causing knock-on disruption from Singapore and Manila to Dubai, Jeddah, and Phnom Penh. The wave of cancellations and delays rippled through Asia’s busiest air corridors late Monday and into Tuesday, as carriers struggled with weather-related and operational problems that upended schedules on both domestic and international routes.

At Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, about 300 Qantas passengers bound for Sydney spent the night in limbo after a six-hour rolling delay ended with the flight being cancelled. Some travelers described being asked to hand over their passports to Thai immigration officials before they were allowed to leave the terminal for hotels, a move that prompted anger and safety concerns. Video from the terminal showed a cardboard box on the floor, filled with passports and boarding passes. “We were delayed every 30 minutes for seven hours. Then the flight was cancelled, and everything became confusing… It’s been 18 hours and we still don’t know when we will leave. It could be tonight or in 2–3 days,” said Ramya, a travel blogger who was among those stuck overnight. Another passenger voiced frustration at the passport handling: “I wouldn’t have let them take my passport; that’s not standard practice.”

Airports in Bangkok and Jakarta bore the brunt of the turmoil, with at least 30 cancellations combined and reports citing between 27 and 30 flights scrubbed as the disruption spread through carriers and connecting hubs. More than 100 delays were reported across the region as crews and aircraft fell out of position and weather slowed operations in Indonesia. Jakarta, Yogyakarta, and Surabaya were among the Indonesian cities worst hit, with Bangkok also seeing extensive delays. The shock was felt beyond Southeast Asia, with Singapore, Manila, Dubai, Jeddah, and Phnom Penh all recording knock-on effects as schedules unraveled.

Multiple major airlines were affected. Qantas, Garuda Indonesia, Saudia, KLM, Hainan Airlines, Air Japan, PAL Express, SpiceJet, Sky Angkor, Bangkok Airways, Oman Air, Indigo, and Scoot saw cancellations or delays linked to the disruption, according to reports from the two main airports and regional hubs. The problems varied by carrier and location but showed a shared pattern: hours-long delays that became late-night cancellations, followed by overcrowded rebooking counters and a scramble for accommodation and onward connections.

In Jakarta, Garuda Indonesia recorded five cancellations and 31 delays. Hainan Airlines saw a 100% cancellation rate there for the day. In Bangkok, Sky Angkor scrapped four flights from Suvarnabhumi and four from Phnom Penh as the ripple spread across its regional network. Bangkok Airways cancelled one flight and delayed 23 others at Suvarnabhumi. The turbulence extended to the Gulf, where British Airways cancelled 40% of its scheduled flights at Dubai International, and to Saudi Arabia, where Saudia reported 35 delays at Jeddah without cancellations. Manila’s main airport counted one cancellation and 46 delays, including impacts to PAL Express, while Singapore Changi reported one cancelled KLM flight.

For passengers caught mid-journey, the practical problems reached far beyond a missed departure. At Suvarnabhumi, people described hours sitting on cold terminal floors amid uncertain updates. Those who were escorted to hotels after cancellations said they had to surrender their passports to Thai immigration officers as part of the process, a step some travelers viewed as alarming. “I wouldn’t have let them take my passport; that’s not standard practice,” one person said, echoing a sentiment shared across social media posts overnight. Others shared footage of the improvised storage of travel documents, drawing questions about oversight and chain-of-custody procedures when planes do not depart as planned.

Qantas issued an apology after the Sydney-bound flight was cancelled in Bangkok. “We sincerely apologise to customers for the disruption. We understand the inconvenience this would have caused. Our teams worked hard to get passengers on their way as quickly as possible. All affected travellers have now arrived in Sydney,” the airline said. The acknowledgment followed a night of uncertainty in the terminal, where passengers reported being told of new departure times in half-hour increments before the cancellation was finally announced close to midnight.

The chain reaction began with a combination of severe weather in parts of Indonesia and broader operational issues, including staffing, maintenance, and local weather constraints that can compound quickly across a regional network. Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta’s busy schedule—linking domestic hubs like Yogyakarta and Surabaya with long-haul routes—left little slack in the system once delays mounted. At Suvarnabhumi, a heavy late-night bank of departures sets up many of the next day’s long-haul connections. When those flights cancelled, it left passengers stranded without easy alternatives and shuffled aircraft and crews out of position for Tuesday’s schedule.

The disruption highlighted how quickly schedules can unravel across interconnected hubs, and how passenger rights and on-the-ground procedures differ by airport and country. Thailand’s Civil Aviation Committee has announced new compensation rules set to take effect on November 20, 2025, raising payouts for domestic disruptions. Under the updated measures, compensation for domestic delays over five hours will double from 600 baht to 1,200 baht, and compensation for domestic cancellations will increase from 1,200 baht to 1,500 baht. Airlines will also be required to provide food and drink vouchers for delays over two hours and hotel accommodation for overnight delays. The changes, due next month, are designed to offer clearer and more consistent support to travelers stuck between flight operations and immigration controls, and will add defined obligations for carriers when plans fall apart late in the day.

While the new rules focus on domestic journeys within Thailand, carriers operating out of Suvarnabhumi Airport said they were working to re-accommodate disrupted passengers according to their own policies and international norms. Overnight cancellations typically trigger hotel accommodations, ground transport to and from the airport, and meal vouchers, but the confusion surrounding passport handling in Bangkok underscored how real-world execution can vary when flights are cancelled at short notice and immigration status needs to be reset for passengers who have already cleared departure controls. Travelers in Bangkok described being directed between airline counters, immigration officers, and hotel shuttles with limited guidance and inconsistent instructions.

At Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta, severe weather conditions forced airlines to space out arrivals and departures, compounding delays across the day as aircraft waited for improved conditions or were repositioned. Garuda Indonesia’s five cancellations and 31 delays in Jakarta reflected the persistent challenges, while Hainan Airlines’ full-day cancellations there signaled that some carriers opted to pull flights entirely rather than risk extended holds and further misconnects. In Bangkok, a mix of regional carriers faced their own operational bottlenecks, with Sky Angkor cancelling four services at Suvarnabhumi and four more at Phnom Penh as it reworked rotations, and Bangkok Airways tallying 23 delayed flights after cutting one.

The ripple across other hubs illustrated how fragile connections can be once a few key services are scrubbed. In the Middle East, British Airways cancelled 40% of its scheduled Dubai services. In Saudi Arabia, Saudia’s 35 delays at Jeddah underscored the reach of the disruption into evening banks and onward long-haul schedules. Singapore and Manila each reported disruptions tied back, in part, to the Thai and Indonesian cancellations. The combined effect was that passengers who were not initially flying to or from Bangkok or Jakarta still found themselves hours late, queued at transfer desks for rebooked itineraries, or sleeping on chairs in transit halls as midnight approached.

For travelers trying to navigate the chaos, airlines and airport authorities urged people to monitor flight status closely and expect last-minute changes. Industry advisories recommended building in flexibility around departure plans, especially for tight connections or events tied to specific arrival times, and to secure ground transfers early, citing the rush for taxis and ride-hailing services that often follows a wave of late-night cancellations. Some passengers in Bangkok reported difficulty finding available hotel rooms near the airport as dozens of flights cancelled at once, with buses ferrying people to properties farther away.

The scenes at Suvarnabhumi and Jakarta also raised lingering questions about coordination between airlines and immigration authorities when flights are cancelled after passengers have cleared outbound checks. In Bangkok, reports of passports being collected in bulk and stored in a box on the terminal floor fueled criticism from travelers who said they were not given clear explanations about why their documents had to be surrendered, who was responsible for them, or how and when they would be returned. Airlines typically work with border officials to manage the temporary return of passengers landside, but policies vary, and authorities sometimes insist on holding passports until hotel arrangements are confirmed and exit processes reversed. The exact protocols can depend on local regulations and staffing on the night.

As Tuesday progressed, airlines focused on clearing backlogs, with Qantas telling customers it had completed re-accommodation and that “All affected travellers have now arrived in Sydney.” Other carriers did not immediately publish comprehensive recovery timelines, but the rolling nature of the delays and crew-duty limits suggested that some knock-on disruption would persist into subsequent days. Once aircraft and staff fall out of place, it can take several cycles to stabilize timetables, especially when aircraft are due for maintenance or when weather windows remain tight.

Travelers at both airports described a familiar set of problems: limited information at gate areas as staff waited on revised departure times, struggle to reach airline call centers once queues formed, and the scramble for essentials like charging points, bottled water, and access to luggage after bags had been checked. Those who were eventually moved to hotels said they left with little clarity on when new flights would operate, echoing Ramya’s account from Bangkok: “We were delayed every 30 minutes for seven hours. Then the flight was cancelled, and everything became confusing… It’s been 18 hours and we still don’t know when we will leave. It could be tonight or in 2–3 days.”

Thailand’s forthcoming rules on compensation may not have fully applied to this round of cancellations, particularly for international legs, but the policy shift points to mounting pressure on carriers and regulators to offer clearer standards. The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand has emphasized passenger protections and obligations on airlines in recent guidance, and travelers can consult the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand for official updates on regulations and consumer rights. Industry groups have also encouraged airlines to streamline communications during cascading delays, including clearer signage, more frequent public announcements, and dedicated staff at transfer points during late-night disruptions.

By midday Tuesday, operations at both Suvarnabhumi Airport and Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta had begun edging back toward normal, but scheduling teams warned that residual delays were likely as aircraft repositioned and crews approached legal duty limits. For many passengers, the immediate memory was less about the mechanics of crew schedules and more about the experience on the ground: unexpected nights on terminal floors, lines snaking past closed shops, and the uneasy feeling of parting with a passport without a clear receipt or timeline. Airlines said they were reviewing the events to improve handling the next time flights are cancelled without warning, a promise that may be tested again as Asia’s peak travel season approaches and weather patterns shift.

The scale of the disruption, spread across two of the region’s key gateways and extending to hubs as far as Dubai and Jeddah, showed how even a relatively small number of cancellations can cascade across a tightly timed network. It also exposed the thin margin for error in late-night operations, when options narrow as the hour gets later and airport services wind down. For those stuck in Bangkok and Jakarta this week, the lesson arrived hard and late: plan for uncertainty, keep essentials close, and be ready for a long wait when the departures board starts flashing red.