Presumably Emirates will regroup, and hope to get passengers on their way ASAP, once they know the airport will reopen.
It goes without saying that for most passengers, turning around midflight sucks. People typically travel because they have somewhere to go (or so I’m told!), whether it’s a vacation or an important commitment. Having to fly 13 hours to nowhere isn’t ideal.
That being said, if I were booked in first class and wasn’t in a rush to get anywhere, I wouldn’t mind getting two ultra long haul Emirates first class flights (and two showers, and double unlimited caviar) for the price of one.
Many might (logically) pose the question of why the flight doesn’t simply divert to another nearby airport, rather
A layover would have been required wherever the plane would have landed (since the pilots couldn’t keep flying), and finding 500+ hotel rooms in a station not ordinarily served by Emirates is complicated. Furthermore, you wouldn’t want to land in a different country, given that many travelers might not be eligible to enter, causing a logistical nightmare. Lastly, the A380 is the largest passenger plane in the world, and not all airports can accommodate it.
So while returning all the way to Dubai is expensive and wasteful in terms of fuel burn, it’s probably the most practical option. Emirates has no shortage of crews, A380s, or hotel rooms in Dubai, making it easy to get people on their way when it’s possible again.
Bottom line
Auckland Airport has been shut down due to flooding, which has major impacts on airlines. However, no flight was impacted quite as much as Emirates’ flight from Dubai to Auckland. The flight was nearing the halfway point of its journey when the decision was made to return to Dubai.
While the flight could have probably diverted elsewhere, at that point the logistics are just easier of returning to a major hub.