Major international air carriers suspended or scaled back flights to or from Tel Aviv after a surprise attack by Hamas militants on Israel over the weekend, saying they were waiting for safety conditions to improve.
About 50 per cent of scheduled Tel Aviv flights did not operate on Sunday and a third were cancelled yesterday as of 6.41pm in Israel, according to Flightradar24, a flight tracking website.
US air carriers United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines on Sunday suspended direct flights to Israel after the Federal Aviation Administration urged airlines to exercise caution.
Many European airlines have also cancelled flights including Ryanair through to tomorrow and Norwegian Air cancelling its flights from Copenhagen and Stockholm to Tel Aviv this week.
Israel’s national carrier El Al was the exception, adding more flights to bring reservists back from around the world to assist in the country’s biggest mobilisation in history.
Israel’s tourism sector, driven by beach- and party-goers in Tel Aviv and historical tours to sites like Jerusalem, is set to take a major hit as flight cancellations pile up. Tourism makes up 3.6pc of total employment, according to OECD data.
US cruise operators Royal Caribbean and Carnival said they “adjusted” their itineraries in the Israel area. Their stocks were down 3pc and 5pc respectively.
In Europe, Air France and Finland’s Finnair suspended direct flights.
Britain’s easyJet halted flights to Tel Aviv on Sunday and yesterday, and said it would adjust the timings of flights over the next few days.
Hungarian budget carrier Wizz Air cancelled flights to and from Tel Aviv until further notice.
Lufthansa group cancelled flights to and from Tel Aviv through yesterday.
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