DUBAI (Reuters) – Wizz Air has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv on Friday and Saturday, joining other airlines in avoiding Israel due to escalating conflict there.
Flights to Tel Aviv from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, Larnaca in Cyprus and Varna in Bulgaria were cancelled on Friday, Wizz Air’s website showed.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has warned airlines to monitor heightened tensions in Israel, including exchanges of rocket fire and air strikes. “The situation in the region remains a matter of high concern for commercial aviation,” it said in a bulletin to airlines on Wednesday.
Emirati carrier flydubai was to operate three of four scheduled flights from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Friday, and two of four scheduled services on Saturday, its website showed.
An airline spokeswoman said fewer flights were being operated due to a drop in demand.
Other airlines including British Airways and American Airlines cancelled flights to Tel Aviv earlier in the week.
Palestinian militants have repeatedly shelled the Tel Aviv area during hostilities that erupted on Monday, raising safety concerns about Ben Gurion Airport, Israel’s main airport, and prompting some carriers to reroute flights to Ramon Airport, some 200 km (125 miles) to the south, near the Red Sea city of Eilat.
(Reporting by Alexander Cornwell; editing by Jason Neely)
