A Wānaka mother and son are feeling “very, very lucky” after securing flights out of bomb-stricken Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.

Deb Jamieson and her son Rocco (19) had stopped in Abu Dhabi for a week in the sun after Rocco competed in the Milano Cortina Olympics, where Rocco made the finals in the snowboard Big Air event.

The pair were planning to fly to Seoul on March 3 on Etihad Airways but their flight was cancelled following military strikes on Iran by the United States and Israel (on February 28), which led to retaliatory strikes by Iran on Gulf states with US bases.

The Jamiesons told the Wānaka App last week they felt “helpless and stuck” in their hotel room, with bombing taking place close by.

Read more: ‘Helpless and stuck’ in Abu Dhabi

On Monday (March 9) Deb confirmed the pair had made it to Zurich.

“We’re feeling very, very lucky right now,” she said.

Their exit wasn’t straightforward, however.

“Just as we were about to walk out of the room with our bags, the alert came through and bombing started about 30 seconds later,” Deb said.

“We thought for sure our flight would be cancelled.”  

When the bombing settled the Jamiesons went to the hotel lobby but they couldn’t leave the hotel until the alert was lifted. 

“As soon as we could we got a taxi to the airport and checked in straight away,” Deb said.

“We were sick to our stomachs the whole time, just staring at the departure board fearing the bombing would start again and we wouldn’t get out.”

Eventually they boarded, but they weren’t able to relax until they reached air space over Europe, five hours into the flight. 

The pair are now in Zurich waiting for Rocco’s father Aaron to join them.

PHOTO: Supplied