US strikes on Iran spark aviation safety warnings as airlines reroute flights

An organisation that monitors flight risks warned on Sunday that U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites could heighten the threat to American operators in the region as airlines continued to avoid large parts of the Middle East due to ongoing missile exchanges.

But following a barrage of early morning Iranian missiles, Israel has reopened its airspace for six hours on Sunday to bring back those stranded abroad since the conflict with Iran began on June 13.

Safe Airspace, a membership-based website run by OPSGROUP, said the U.S. attacks on Iran may increase risks to U.S. operators in the region.

“While there have been no specific threats made against civil aviation, Iran has previously warned it would retaliate by attacking US military interests in the Middle East - either directly or via proxies such as Hezbollah,” Safe Airspace said.

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Meanwhile, flight tracking website FlightRadar24, said airlines maintained flight diversions around the region.

“Following US attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, commercial traffic in the region is operating as it has since new airspace restrictions were put into place last week,” it said on social media platform X.

Its website showed airlines were not flying in the airspace over Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel. They have chosen other routings such as north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, even if these result in higher fuel and crew costs and longer flight times.

Missile and drone barrages in an expanding number of conflict zones globally represent a high risk to airline traffic.

Since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 13, carriers have suspended flights to destinations in the affected countries, though there have been some evacuation flights from neighbouring nations and some bringing stranded Israelis home.

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In the days before the U.S. strikes, American Airlines suspended flights to Qatar and United Airlines did the same with flights to Dubai.

Safe Airspace said it was possible airspace risks could now extend to countries including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. “We continue to advise a high degree of caution at this time,” it said.

Rescue and evacuation flights

Israel’s carriers, El Al Israel Airlines, Arkia, Israir and Air Haifa, said earlier on Sunday they had suspended rescue flights that allowed people to return to Israel until further notice.

El Al said it would also extend its cancellation of scheduled flights through Friday and Israir said it had halted the sale of tickets for all flights through July 7.

A spokesperson for Israel’s airports authority said the country’s main airport, Ben Gurion near Tel Aviv, was expected to reopen for rescue flight landings on Sunday between 1100 and 1700 GMT. The small Haifa Airport serving Israel’s north would also be open from 1100 to 1700 GMT.

Flag carrier El Al, along with Arkia, Air Haifa and Israir said they would operate at least 10 flights on Sunday starting at 1100 GMT.

Tens of thousands of Israelis and others who had booked tickets to Israel are stuck abroad.

At the same time, nearly 40,000 tourists in Israel are looking to leave the country, some of whom are going via Jordan’s borders to Amman and Aqaba and others via Egypt and by boat to Cyprus.

“In accordance with security directives, we are working to bring Israelis home as quickly as possible,” Israel’s Transport Minister Miri Regev said in a statement.

Japan’s foreign ministry said on Sunday it had evacuated 21 people, including 16 Japanese nationals, from Iran overland to Azerbaijan. It said it was the second such evacuation since Thursday and that it would conduct further evacuations if necessary.

New Zealand’s government said on Sunday it would send a Hercules military transport plane to the Middle East on standby to evacuate New Zealanders from the region.

It said in a statement that government personnel and a C-130J Hercules aircraft would leave Auckland on Monday. The plane would take some days to reach the region, it said.

The government was also in talks with commercial airlines to assess how they may be able to assist, it added.