Air travel across Asia has been hit by yet another wave of cancellations, leaving passengers stranded from Indonesia and Malaysia to Taiwan and Hong Kong. In the latest disruption, more than 20 flights were cancelled on February 10 and 11, 2026, affecting key routes linking Jakarta, Singapore, Sydney, Taipei, Hong Kong and a string of regional destinations. Major carriers including Batik Air, Malaysia Airlines, VietJet and Cathay Pacific have been caught up in the turmoil, compounding a pattern of delays and cancellations that has dogged Asian skies since the start of the year.
Fresh Cancellations Across Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Hong Kong
The most recent round of disruption emerged over the weekend and into Monday, February 10 and 11, with 29 cancellations reported across major airports in Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Hong Kong. These scrapped departures followed an already difficult week in which thousands of travellers faced delays and missed connections across the wider region.
In Indonesia, Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport once again found itself at the centre of the crisis. Flights serving Jakarta, Bali, Surabaya, Makassar, Palembang, Yogyakarta and other domestic hubs were affected, with Batik Air among the most heavily impacted carriers. Services connecting Jakarta with Makassar and other key secondary cities were cancelled outright, while further flights departed significantly behind schedule.
Malaysia also suffered notable schedule cuts, particularly at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Malaysia Airlines cancelled a mixture of short and long haul flights, including services to Sydney as well as high-frequency regional connections in Southeast Asia. Routes linking Kuala Lumpur with Singapore and other nearby cities experienced knock-on disruption as crews and aircraft were reassigned or held on the ground.
Further north, Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in Taipei and Hong Kong International Airport reported cancellations to and from major regional hubs. Flights between Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore and various cities in mainland China were affected, with carriers adjusting schedules in response to what appears to be mounting operational strain and, in some cases, weather-related challenges.
Key Routes Disrupted: From Sydney to Singapore and Beyond
The latest cancellations have struck a broad mix of long haul and regional routes, magnifying the impact on passengers and schedules. Services between Kuala Lumpur and Sydney were among those cut, forcing travellers to rebook on limited alternatives or face extended layovers in transit hubs. The Sydney route is particularly important for business and visiting friends and relatives traffic, making its disruption especially painful for travellers on tight itineraries.
Shorter regional routes have also been hit hard. Flights linking Jakarta and Singapore, Jakarta and Bali, and Kuala Lumpur and Singapore have all seen cancellations or extended delays in recent days. These routes function as vital connectors for passengers heading onward to long haul destinations in Europe, North America and the Middle East, meaning a single cancellation can cascade into multiple missed onward flights.
Taipei and Hong Kong have felt the effects on regional connectivity too. Cancellations on routes between Taipei and Hong Kong, as well as services to Bangkok and other Southeast Asian capitals, have left passengers scrambling to adjust onwards travel. The concentration of cancellations on these highly trafficked corridors underscores the scale of the operational challenges airlines are confronting this month.
For leisure travellers, the timing is particularly challenging. Many had planned trips around peak holiday periods and major regional events, only to find themselves grounded in crowded terminals. With hotel availability tight in many cities and alternative flights heavily booked, some passengers have been forced to cut trips short or abandon plans altogether.
Airlines Under Strain: Batik Air, Malaysia Airlines, VietJet, Cathay Pacific and Others
A growing list of Asian and international carriers has found itself under pressure as disruptions pile up. Batik Air, which operates an extensive domestic and regional network out of Indonesia, has been associated with multiple cancellations and delays at Jakarta and other key airports in recent days. The carrier is grappling with tight aircraft utilisation and congested ground operations, leaving limited flexibility when issues arise.
Malaysia Airlines has also been affected, particularly at its Kuala Lumpur hub. While the national carrier has emphasised safety and compliance with operational requirements, travellers have reported abrupt cancellations and re-timings on both regional and long haul services. The adjustments have had a ripple effect on partner and codeshare flights, further complicating rebooking efforts for already stranded passengers.
Low-cost and regional operators, including VietJet on routes in and out of Vietnam and Southeast Asia, have been drawn into the disruption as well. With many budget airlines running tight turnarounds and relying on high aircraft utilisation to keep fares low, even minor schedule disruptions can rapidly escalate into a long list of delayed or cancelled flights.
Cathay Pacific, meanwhile, continues to navigate a complex operating environment from its base in Hong Kong. The airline has previously cancelled hundreds of flights in response to severe weather systems affecting southern China and the South China Sea, and it has recently adjusted long haul operations as part of broader network changes. While not all of these changes are directly tied to the latest cancellations in Southeast Asia, they contribute to a sense of instability across Asia’s interconnected aviation network.
Why So Many Flights Are Being Cancelled Now
The surge in cancellations across Asia is the result of several overlapping factors rather than a single cause. Operational constraints, crew rostering challenges, aircraft availability and weather disruptions have all played a role in recent days. In some cases, high winds, heavy rain and lingering weather systems across the region have forced airports to temporarily reduce capacity or close runways, backing up departures and arrivals.
Airlines are also contending with thinner margins for error as they rebuild capacity after the pandemic years. Many carriers are operating close to pre-crisis schedules, but fleets and staffing have not always scaled up at the same pace. This leaves limited room to absorb unexpected maintenance requirements, air traffic control restrictions or crew duty-time limits without resorting to cancellations.
Additionally, the dense interconnection of Asia’s major hubs means that disruptions in one location can quickly propagate across the network. A delayed departure from Jakarta or Kuala Lumpur can make it impossible for an aircraft to operate a later flight from Singapore or Taipei within legal time limits, triggering further cancellations. Once such a cycle begins, it can take days for schedules to fully stabilise.
For travellers, these structural pressures translate into very personal consequences. Passengers report receiving short-notice cancellation messages, often only after arriving at the airport. Others discover that their flights remain listed as “delayed” for hours before being quietly removed from departure boards, forcing last-minute changes to accommodation, transport and work plans.
Airports Under Pressure: Jakarta, Singapore, Sydney, Taipei, Hong Kong
Major hubs across the region are struggling to cope with the combined burden of delays and cancellations. Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta, one of Southeast Asia’s busiest airports, has repeatedly reported high numbers of disrupted flights since the start of February. On several recent days, hundreds of services were delayed and more than a dozen cancelled, reflecting broader challenges in air traffic flow and ground handling.
Singapore Changi is likewise facing sustained pressure. Although the airport maintains a reputation for efficiency and rapid recovery, data from February 11 show hundreds of delayed flights and a cluster of cancellations across multiple carriers. The situation has left connecting passengers with reduced options, particularly those seeking to reach regional destinations in Indonesia and the Philippines on the same day.
Sydney has emerged as a significant long haul endpoint affected by the latest cancellations. With fewer direct services from Southeast Asian hubs on some days, travellers bound for Australia may face longer routings, including additional stops or overnight stays in transit. This is especially disruptive for passengers returning from holidays or business trips who must be back in Australia on specific dates.
In Northeast Asia, Taipei and Hong Kong airports are managing a mixture of local weather impacts and network ripple effects. Hong Kong, a key gateway for traffic between East Asia, Southeast Asia and long haul markets, has already been forced in recent months to cancel services on a large scale due to powerful typhoons. Even when storms dissipate, repositioning aircraft and restoring normal schedules can take time, leaving little slack when new disruptions emerge elsewhere in the region.
Human Impact: Stranded Passengers and Mounting Frustration
Behind the statistics, the human toll of Asia’s ongoing flight disruptions is substantial. Across Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Taipei and Hong Kong, passengers have described scenes of crowded departure halls, long queues at service counters and limited information from carriers overwhelmed by demand for assistance.
Many affected travellers include families returning from holidays, students heading back to universities, and business travellers on tight schedules. When flights are cancelled at short notice, rebooking can be particularly difficult, as alternative services on the same day are often fully booked or themselves at risk of delay. Some passengers have been forced to sleep overnight in terminals, relying on airline-issued meal vouchers or paying out of pocket for hotels that may later prove difficult to claim back.
The stress is heightened for those on multi-sector itineraries. A traveller scheduled to fly from Sydney to Kuala Lumpur and then on to Jakarta, for example, may find that the first flight operates, but the second is cancelled. In such cases, passengers can end up stranded far from home or destination, trapped between airlines operating different legs of the journey and unsure who is responsible for arranging alternatives.
There is also a growing frustration over communication. While some airlines have improved their use of mobile apps and messaging to alert passengers of disruptions, many travellers still report receiving updates late or only when they actively check flight status themselves. For those already en route to the airport or in transit, this can mean discovering cancellations only upon reaching the check-in desk.
What Travellers Can Do Right Now
For those scheduled to fly through Jakarta, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, Hong Kong or Sydney in the coming days, vigilance and flexibility are essential. Travellers should monitor their flight status frequently in the 24 hours leading up to departure, using airline apps or direct contact with carriers rather than relying solely on airport departure boards.
Passengers booked on routes operated by Batik Air, Malaysia Airlines, VietJet, Cathay Pacific and other regional carriers may wish to build in extra time for connections or consider routings with longer layovers that provide a buffer in case of delays. Those with tight onward plans, such as cruises, tours or important events, should review the terms of their travel insurance to understand what coverage may be available in the event of cancellation.
At the airport, travellers are advised to approach customer service counters as soon as disruptions are announced, as queues can build quickly. It can be helpful to arrive with a clear understanding of potential alternative flights and routings, even on partner airlines, to speed up the rebooking process. In many cases, being prepared to accept rerouting via a different hub can secure a seat home sooner than waiting for the next direct service.
For those yet to book travel, it may be wise to allow greater flexibility in dates and times, avoiding last departures of the day where feasible and choosing itineraries that offer workable alternatives in the event of disruption. While there is no way to completely eliminate the risk presented by the current wave of cancellations, careful planning can reduce the likelihood of becoming stranded far from home.
Looking Ahead: A Region Searching for Stability
The latest cancellations affecting Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney form part of a broader pattern of instability in Asia’s aviation landscape. In recent weeks, successive reports have highlighted thousands of delays and dozens of cancellations per day across multiple countries, pointing to systemic pressures that will not be resolved overnight.
Airlines and airports are working to add resilience by adjusting schedules, refining crew planning and investing in ground operations. Some carriers are building greater buffers between flights, accepting slightly lower utilisation in exchange for a higher probability of on-time performance. However, such changes will take time to bear fruit and may lead to fewer available seats and higher fares in the short term.
For now, travellers face a period in which flexibility and patience are likely to remain indispensable. While the disruptions across Jakarta, Singapore, Sydney, Taipei and Hong Kong are frustrating, they also underline a core reality of modern aviation in a densely connected region: when problems arise at one or two key hubs, the consequences quickly spread across countries and continents.
As February progresses, carriers and regulators will be under pressure to restore reliability and rebuild traveller confidence. Until then, passengers flying with Malaysia Airlines, Batik Air, VietJet, Cathay Pacific and other regional players would be well advised to stay informed, maintain backup plans where possible and prepare for the possibility that their journey may take longer and involve more detours than originally expected.