Israeli travel group claims direct flight to Mauritius denied landing permission for ‘political’ reasons

An Israeli tourism company has said a scheduled flight from Israel to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius on Saturday was canceled after local authorities refused to let it land.

Spirit World Productions, which specializes in tourism to Bali, the Seychelles, and Mauritius, said it received information that the decision by Mauritian authorities to deny the flight landing clearance was based on “political and diplomatic considerations.”

The travel company’s website says that it offers direct charter flights from Israel to Mauritius — something that no airline currently offers — using airplanes chartered from Air Seychelles.

The fine print clarifies, however, that the flights are not non-stop and include what Spirit World Productions calls a “refueling stop” in the Seychelles.

Air Seychelles currently offers a weekly indirect Tel Aviv-Mauritius route, with a one-hour stopover on the Seychelles island of Mahé, and other indirect routes are available to Israeli tourists through other airlines.

“We did everything we could until the last moment so that the flight would go ahead as planned,” said Tali Yativ, the chief executive officer of Spirit World Productions. “We’re continuing to work with all relevant parties to help travelers and assist them individually, and with Air Seychelles to receive the full information.”

Israel and Mauritius first established relations in 1968, before severing ties in 1973 and re-establishing them 20 years later, in 1993.

Neither country has an embassy in the other, although Mauritius maintains an honorary consulate in Tel Aviv. The Israeli embassy in South Africa is responsible for providing consular services to Israelis in Mauritius.

Mauritius has been critical of Israel in recent years amid the war in Gaza.

According to the Ynet news site, attempts were made overnight to resolve the landing issue, but ultimately the airline, Air Seychelles, announced that the flight would be canceled. The company said the flight had received all the required approvals several months ago.

It was unclear whether this would have been the first such flight between Tel Aviv and Mauritius offered by the travel company, or whether additional ones were planned for the future.

There was no public comment from Mauritian authorities on the matter, and the statement by Spirit World Productions did not clarify the nature of the “political and diplomatic considerations” which apparently led to the last-minute flight cancellation.

Channel 12 reported that sources familiar with the decision said the incident was linked to the empty seats of the Mauritius delegation to the United Nations during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s speech at the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday.

The tourism company said it shared in the frustration of passengers “after months of planning, excitement, and anticipation for their vacation, and especially after the uncertainty and tension of the past several hours.”

The company said it was working with Air Seychelles and authorities to figure out how to proceed with the affected customers.