British Airways announced Wednesday it has suspended all its flights to Tel Aviv, citing security concerns in Israel.
The suspension of flights came on the same day that BA Flight 165 from London’s Heathrow Airport was on its final descent into Ben-Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv before turning around and heading back to Britain.
Flight-tracking website Flightradar showed the flight was near the northern city of Haifa when it made a U-turn. It was due to land at 3.05 p.m.
A spokesperson for Israel’s airports authority said rockets were flying around Tel Aviv at the time of the British Airways diversion, but there was no immediate threat to the flight or Ben-Gurion International Airport.
The return to Britain was the pilot’s decision, and no other flights have been diverted, the spokesperson said.
British Airways said in a statement: “Safety is always our highest priority and following the latest assessment of the situation, we’re suspending our flights to and from Tel Aviv.”
The airline said it was contacting customers booked to travel to or from Tel Aviv to apologize for the disruption and to offer options, including refunds or rebooking with other airlines at a later date.
“We continue to monitor the situation in the region closely.”
British Airways did not say when flights would resume.
Governments and airlines have sought to add flights from Israel to evacuate their country’s citizens, while Israeli airlines have sought to fly reservists back to Israel.
Aviation authorities have cautioned airlines flying to Israel but haven’t grounded flights, though some experts have warned that the current airspace situation was risky due to ongoing rocket attacks.
Israel’s Ministry of Tourism said it is “committed to ensuring that all tourists visiting Israel are safe and informed.”
Other Airlines Halt Flights
Since the surprise attack by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7, many international airlines have suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv, offering refunds and waiving rebooking fees for passengers.Airlines including EasyJet, Air France-KLM, Lufthansa, Wizz Air have all suspended flights to Tel Aviv.
“The airline is constantly monitoring the geopolitical situation in the areas served and overflown by its aircraft in order to ensure the highest level of flight safety,” Air France said on its website.
British airline Virgin Atlantic is continuing to operate flights between Heathrow and Tel Aviv.
Flydubai said Wednesday it will reduce flights to Tel Aviv from four to two per day.
U.S. international carriers, including Delta, United, and American Airlines, have recently canceled flights or codeshare services.
“We continue to monitor the situation with safety and security top of mind and will adjust our operation as needed,” American Airlines said in a statement.
The U.S. government has been in talks with airlines, encouraging them to resume flights, the State Department said.
The department said Wednesday it was exploring options, including charter flights to help U.S. citizens travel to nearby countries where they could catch commercial flights to the United States.
Chicago-based United Airlines (UAL.O) said Wednesday it will fly two additional roundtrip flights between Newark, New Jersey, and Athens in the coming days to help Americans trying to return home from Israel.
