Several airlines suspend Tel Aviv flights until safety conditions improve
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Cathay said it would provide further updates ahead of its next scheduled service, on Oct 12.
PHOTO: AFP
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HONG KONG – A growing number of international airlines have suspended flights to Tel Aviv after the Hamas militant group launched attacks on Israel
Hamas fighters killed at least 700 Israelis and abducted dozens in last Saturday’s attacks, which were the deadliest since the Yom Kippur war 50 years ago.
Israel is retaliating by pounding the Palestinian enclave of Gaza.
On Sunday, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines from the United States said they were suspending direct flights to Tel Aviv
The three carriers normally run direct services from major US cities such as New York, Chicago, Washington DC and Miami.
In a statement, United Airlines said it ran two scheduled flights to the US from Israel late on Saturday and early on Sunday but suspended services “until conditions allow them to resume”.
Delta representatives said flights “have been cancelled into this week” while they monitor the situation to make necessary schedule changes.
The US authorities have also advised carriers to monitor the situation before resuming operations.
Similar suspensions have been announced in Europe and Asia.
European carriers, such as Germany’s Lufthansa, Air France and Hungary’s budget airline Wizz Air, are pulling flights to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport.
Britain’s easyjet said it halted flights to Tel Aviv on Sunday and Monday, and would adjust the timings of its flights in the next few days.
Hainan Airlines, the only Chinese airline to fly between China and Israel, cancelled flights between Tel Aviv and Shanghai on Monday.
It said it would continue flights linking Beijing and the southern tech hub of Shenzhen with Tel Aviv while waiving fees for cancellations before Oct 20.
Cathay Pacific Airways said on Monday it was cancelling its flights CX675 from Hong Kong to Tel Aviv, and CX676 from Tel Aviv to Hong Kong on Tuesday.
Cathay said it would provide further updates ahead of its next scheduled service on Thursday.
Korean Air said it cancelled its Monday flight between the port city of Incheon and Tel Aviv and expects future flights to be irregular.
Air India has also suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv, an airline spokesperson said in a statement, adding that this will be in effect until Oct 14.
Israeli flag carrier, El Al Israel Airlines and Turkish carriers Pegasus Hava and Turkish Airlines continue to offer some flights.
Emirates and FlyDubai flights from Tel Aviv continued to be scheduled for later in the day, according to data from FlightRadar24.
Ben Gurion International Airport typically handles about 300 departures a day, according to FlightRadar24.
The most popular service is to Istanbul with 105 flights a week, followed by Larnaca in Cyprus, and Antalya in Turkey.
Dubai, Athens, Rome, Paris and Vienna are all among the top 10, the flight tracking website showed.
Apart from flight cancellations, airlines are also likely to avoid Israeli airspace.
Even though it is relatively small, the detour will add another complication for airliners crossing into major hubs in the Persian Gulf and beyond.
Syrian airspace to the north has remained shut to many operators for years amid the civil war in the country.
Russian and Ukrainian fly zones – constituting the biggest landmass on the planet – have also been off limits to many airlines for more than a year.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued a so-called Conflict Zone Information Bulletin for Israeli airspace.
“Air operators are recommended to ensure that a robust risk assessment is in place together with a high level of contingency planning for their operations and to be ready for short notice instructions from the Israeli authorities,” EASA said. REUTERS, BLOOMBERG
