DALLAS — British Airways (BA) has announced it will suspend its flights to Tel Aviv until the end of March 2025. This decision was made in response to the increasing tensions in the Middle East and the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
In the past year, tensions with Hezbollah, the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and two missile attacks on Israel by Iran in April and October have resulted in the cancellation of numerous flights to and from Israel by foreign airlines.
In recent months, the cancellations have become increasingly frequent as Israel has intensified its response to Hezbollah's nearly daily rocket and drone attacks, which have included several attacks on Israel, necessitating the closure of its airspace for a few hours at a time.
Air Europa (UX), Air France (AF), ITA Airways (AZ), and Ryanair (FR) are set to renew flights to and from Israel next week. airBaltic (BT), Bulgaria Air (FB), Iberia (IB), LOT (LO) and the Lufthansa Group (LH) are expected to join them the following week.
Meanwhile, Israeli airlines Arkia (IZ), El Al (LY) and Israir (6H) have maintained their operations to and from Israel, canceling flights only when Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) or Israeli airspace is closed.
Recent Security Measures at Ben Gurion Airport
Following directives from Israel's security apparatus, TLV temporarily suspended take-offs and landings on Monday afternoon.
The IDF announced that five drones were intercepted and shot down over the Mediterranean Sea by helicopters and fighter jets after the TLV resumed its operations. The IDF TLV directives were in effect for less than 30 minutes, according to the Times of Israel.
The army stated that the drones were destroyed before entering Israeli airspace and that there were no additional concerns regarding a potential security incident at TLV.
British Airways was operating up to two direct flights per day from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to TLV using two Boeing 787 aircraft prior to the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October.
The carrier resumed operation to TLV with a smaller Airbus A320 in April, providing a business class service but no lie-flat seats like the Dreamliner service. Now, the airline is contacting its customers to advise them of their options, "including a full refund."
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Exploring Airline History Volume I
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David H. Stringer, the History Editor for AIRWAYS Magazine, has chronicled the story of the commercial aviation industry with his airline history articles that have appeared in AIRWAYS over two decades. Here, for the first time, is a compilation of those articles.
Subjects A through C are presented in this first of three volumes. Covering topics such as the airlines of Alaska at the time of statehood and Canada's regional airlines of the 1960s, the individual histories of such carriers as Allegheny, American, Braniff, and Continental are also included in Volume One. Get your copy today!
December 2024
