Following the attacks in Beirut and Tehran, which killed Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, two US airlines have canceled flights to and from Israel.
US carrier Delta canceled last night and today’s New York-Tel Aviv flights, while another US carrier United Airlines, which operates two daily flights between New York and Tel Aviv has canceled all flights to and from Israel until August 7.
Both Delta and United, like all foreign airlines, halted their flights to and from Israel on October 7. United resumed flights in March but halted them again in mid-April following the Iranian attack on Israel, before resuming them again on June 9. Delta also renewed flights to Israel in June.
The first airline to announce a change in its schedule for Israel was Lufthansa, which has added a stopover in Larnaca, Cyprus, which it describes as a technical stopover. The Lufthansa Group includes Austrian Airlines, which has made changes to its schedule, but not canceled any flights, as well as Swiss, Brussels Airlines, and Eurowings, which have not changed their schedules.
Following the attacks in Lebanon and Iran, Israel’s airspace was closed yesterday morning north of Hadera for at least 24 hours, although this did not affect Ben Gurion airport to the south.
Business as usual for Israeli airlines
Israeli airlines El Al, Arkia and Israir are saying that it is business as usual and have so far not made any changes to their schedules.
Israir said, "Israir continues to operate as usual according to the company's planned flight schedule and is working in accordance with the instructions of the security authorities and is in continuous contact with the Civil Aviation Authority. Yesterday, about 40 flights took off for different destinations. Any changes or updates will be published on the website and on social media."
Arkia said "At the moment, Arkia continues to operate as usual and the company's planned flight schedule is operating as usual. The company operates in coordination with the directives of the aviation authorities and the security forces."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on August 1, 2024.
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2024.