US and European airlines have suspended flights to Ben Gurion airport in Israel after a rocket from the Gaza strip landed directly next to the airport.
On Tuesday, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered all US carriers to suspend flights for 24 hours. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) also issued a ‘Service Information Bulletin’ with a strong recommendation for all EU airlines to avoid the Israeli airport until further notice.
Following these notifications, numerous airlines grounded their flights to Israel. Pinar Erdem, regional commercial manager of Turkish Airlines in South Africa, told Travel Buyer the airline has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv on July 22, 23 and 24. Due to the emergency situation in Tel Aviv, the airline has also announced that passengers will be able to change reservations and itineraries without penalty for flights to or from Tel Aviv between July 31 and August 15.
Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines and Germanwings suspended flights to Tel Aviv on July 22 and 23. The airline said in a statement: “Passengers that were booked on one of the cancelled flights can re-book at no cost or have the ticket price reimbursed.”
El Al has not cancelled any flights, but has announced the airline will be extending the option to change or cancel outgoing flights from Israel without any extra charge until Friday, July 25, subject to certain conditions. Customers currently staying abroad can postpone their return flight to Israel until August 31, with no change fees.
Israel’s transport minister, Israel Katz, opened Uvda airport, the country's second terminus for air traffic, which lies just north of Eilat, in the wake of the spate of flight cancellations.
