British Airways extends flight suspension until July 31, as Aegean returns
Air France extends halt until May 26 at least, as foreign carriers struggle with decision on resuming flights; past week saw return of Wizz Air and Delta
British Airways on Friday extended the cancellation of flights to and from Israel until July 31, following the Houthi missile strike at Ben Gurion Airport at the beginning of the month.
The airline had previously halted all flights until mid-June.
Air France, meanwhile, further extended its own flight pause from May 24 to May 26. It was unclear whether this would be extended further.
Most foreign airlines halted flights to Israel following the May 4 strike, when Israeli air defenses failed to intercept an incoming ballistic missile that impacted near an access road several hundred yards from the control tower at the main Terminal 3. Some have now resumed flights, while others have continued to extend the hiatus, citing concerns for the safety of passengers and crew amid the ongoing regional volatility.
Low-cost Hungarian carrier Wizz Air resumed flights to Tel Aviv last week, and this week saw the return of US airline Delta as well as Greece’s Aegean Airlines.
Various airlines’ routes are currently on pause for several more days or weeks, which could be further extended, as the carriers have repeatedly pushed off their return dates after holding assessments.
Flights of Air France and Polish airline LOT are currently halted until May 26; Spain’s Iberia until May 31; airBaltic until June 2; Italy’s ITA, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Swiss, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings until June 8; Ryanair until June 11; American carrier United Airlines’ route is suspended until June 12; and Air India until June 19.
Amid the suspensions, foreign airlines have urged Israel’s Transportation Ministry to declare a special security situation and temporarily limit passenger compensation rights to make the resumption of flight services to the country more feasible.
In a letter last week, foreign carriers called on Transportation Minister Miri Regev to issue a temporary order that would restrict consumer compensation entitlements in the event of flight cancellations due to the security situation.
“In light of the current state of emergency and the disastrous consequences of security incidents on the aviation and tourism industry… it appears that the conditions are ripe to issue an order to instate mechanisms applicable for emergency situations, which will allow flexibility in [passenger compensation] regulation, and incentivize foreign airlines to… resume their operations to Israel,” said Adv. Shirly Kazir, head of aviation & tourism practices at the FISCHER & Co. (FBC) law firm, in the letter seen by The Times of Israel.
This, the airlines explained, would ease the costs and financial risk of disruptions and cancellations if they have to halt operations again because of the security situation.
Under aviation law, in the event of a flight cancellation made less than 14 days before departure, foreign airlines are obliged to offer an alternative flight to the passenger. But due to the current scarcity of seats, providing an alternate flight costs much more, to an unreasonable degree, than the price the passenger paid to the airline, the letter argued.
This “encourages airlines that are forced to cancel their flights due to a security incident to suspend their activity for extended periods, instead of stopping them only sporadically,” wrote Kazir.
In the letter, the foreign airlines demanded that the advance notification period to passengers in the event of a flight change or cancellation be shortened from 14 days to three.
Other changes the airlines seek include reducing their obligation to provide hotel accommodation for up to two nights for passengers in the event of flight cancellations, and an exemption from paying financial compensation beyond the refund of ticket fares for flights scheduled starting May 5 until the end of the emergency situation.
Over the past 19 months, most foreign airlines have repeatedly canceled and resumed their flights to and from Israel. Many foreign airlines have lamented that they are grappling with a multitude of class actions and small claims from passengers, who are suing for compensation as stipulated in aviation law.
Beyond the temporary amendments in the legislation, the group of foreign airlines is calling on the government to provide them with assistance related to insuring their operations in Israel, similar to the assistance given to Israeli airlines.
There is concern in Israel that the repeated disruptions and financial risks they entail could cause some airlines to cancel their routes to Israel altogether.
Sharon Wrobel contributed to this report.
The Times of Israel Community.