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In response to escalating tensions in the Middle East, airlines in Europe and Asia have begun rerouting flights between the two regions, further narrowing flight options and increasing operating costs between Asia and Europe.
Iran on April 13 launched a series of drone and missile attacks against Israel in retaliation for what Israel claimed was an April 1 attack on diplomatic facilities in Syria.
Concerns about possible retaliation and growing conflict in the region have led to the closure of the airspace. Israel closed its airspace on April 13 following the attack, but reopened it at 7:30 a.m. local time on April 14.
National airline El Al suspended a series of scheduled flights to Europe, Dubai and Moscow on April 14, but it remains unclear whether these cancellations will continue this week.
Iran has also imposed airspace restrictions, and other Middle Eastern countries including Lebanon and Iraq have also temporarily closed their airspace following the attacks.
The series of closures has forced a flurry of schedule changes to avoid the affected airspace, which is heavily used by airlines operating flights between Europe and South and Southeast Asia. This has resulted in longer flight times, with some routes extending flight times by up to an hour.
Singapore Airlines, for example, rerouted its flights to Europe to avoid Iranian airspace. Instead of normally flying over Iran, flight tracking data now shows the flight heading north, passing over parts of Central Asia and reaching Europe. As a result, flight times between the two regions have increased.
Malaysia Airlines has taken similar steps on its flights between Kuala Lumpur and London, its sole European hub, flying south of Iran over Saudi airspace on April 13 and then rerouting north the following day. I chose to change and head to Central Asia.
Meanwhile, Qantas has adjusted its direct flight from Perth to London, adding a temporary refueling stop in Singapore as the route changes.
Indian airlines such as Air India and Vistara have confirmed that their flights will avoid Iranian airspace, and Air India has also suspended flights to Tel Aviv.
Apart from adjusting flights to Asia, European airlines have also suspended flights to several locations in the Middle East.
Lufthansa Group has announced that flights to Tel Aviv, Erbil and Amman will be suspended until April 15, and flights to Beirut and Tehran will be suspended until “at least” April 18.
“The Lufthansa Group had already decided to fly in Iranian airspace from Friday, April 12 until Thursday, April 18, and therefore temporarily suspend flights to Tehran,” it added.
The disruption is the latest in a series of challenges facing businesses in Asia and Europe. After the Ukraine war, airlines were forced to avoid Russian airspace, particularly affecting operations to North Asia.
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