Airlines continue to avoid Middle East airspace after US attack on Iran
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Missile and drone barrages in an expanding number of conflict zones globally represent a high risk to airline traffic.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Airlines continued to avoid large parts of the Middle East on June 22 after US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites
“Following US attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, commercial traffic in the region is operating as it has since new airspace restrictions were put into place last week,” FlightRadar24 said on X.
Its website showed airlines were not flying in the airspace over Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel. They have chosen other routes, such as north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, even if it results in higher fuel and crew costs and longer flight times.
Singapore Airlines (SIA) said it had cancelled two flights between Singapore and Dubai on June 22 following a “security assessment” of the situation in the Middle East. The flights were SQ494 departing Singapore for Dubai at 3.10pm, and SQ495, which was scheduled to leave Dubai for Singapore at 7.45pm (11.45pm Singapore time).
“SIA will be contacting all affected customers to inform them about the flight cancellations,” the airline said. “As the situation remains fluid, other SIA flights between Singapore and Dubai may be affected.”
Missile and drone barrages in an expanding number of conflict zones globally represent a high risk to airline traffic.
Safe Airspace, a website run by OpsGroup, a membership-based organisation that shares flight risk information, said on June 22 that the US attacks on Iran may increase risks to US operators in the region.
“While there have been no specific threats made against civil aviation, Iran has previously warned it would retaliate by attacking US military interests in the Middle East – either directly or via proxies such as Hezbollah,” Safe Airspace said.
Since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 13
Following a barrage of early morning Iranian missiles, Israel reopened its airspace for six hours on June 22 to bring back those stranded abroad since the conflict with Iran began on June 13.
In the days before the US strikes on Iran, American Airlines suspended flights to Qatar, and United Airlines did the same with flights to Dubai.
Safe Airspace said it was possible airspace risks could now extend to countries such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
“We continue to advise a high degree of caution at this time,” it said.
On June 22, Israel’s largest carriers, El Al Israel Airlines, Arkia and Israir, said they were suspending rescue flights that allowed people to return to Israel until further notice.
El Al said it would also extend its cancellation of scheduled flights through June 27, and Israir said it had halted the sale of tickets for all flights through July 7.
Tens of thousands of Israelis and others who had booked tickets to Israel are stuck abroad.
At the same time, nearly 40,000 tourists in Israel are looking to leave the country, some of whom are going via Jordan’s borders to Amman and Aqaba, and others via Egypt and by boat to Cyprus.
“In accordance with security directives, we are working to bring Israelis home as quickly as possible,” Israel’s Transport Minister Miri Regev said in a statement.
Japan’s Foreign Ministry said on June 22 that it had evacuated 21 people, including 16 Japanese nationals, from Iran overland to Azerbaijan. It said it was the second such evacuation since June 19 and that it would conduct further evacuations if necessary.
New Zealand’s government said on June 22 that it would send a Hercules military transport plane to the Middle East on standby to evacuate New Zealanders from the region.
It said in a statement that government personnel and a C-130J Hercules aircraft would leave Auckland on June 23 and that the plane would take some days to reach the region.
The government was also in talks with commercial airlines to assess how they may be able to assist, it added. REUTERS
