Airlines reroute flights after Israeli attack on Iran (updated)

EVA Airways

19/04/2024 08:45

(Adds EVA Air response in 14th paragraph)
    By Jamie Freed
       April 19 (Reuters) - Airlines quickly changed flight
paths over Iran, diverted to alternate airports or returned
planes to their departure points on Friday in response to
airspace and airport closures after an Israeli attack on Iran,
flight tracking data showed.
     Iran closed its airports in Tehran, Shiraz and Isfahan
after the attack and cleared flights from the western portion of
its airspace for a few hours after the attack, according to
flight tracking website FlightRadar24.
    By 0445 GMT the airports and airspace had reopened, and
closure notices posted on a U.S. Federal Aviation Administration
database had been removed.
    Before the airports reopened, Flydubai said it had cancelled
its Friday flights to Iran. One of its earlier flights turned
back to Dubai, it said.
    An Iran Air flight from Rome to Tehran was diverted to
Ankara, Turkey, Flightradar 24 showed.
    Emirates, Flydubai, Turkish Air, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi and
Belavia were among the carriers continuing to fly over the part
of Iran's airspace that remained open in the initial hours after
the attack early on Friday, the tracking website showed.
    "We are monitoring the situation closely and will make
changes to our flight paths in consultation with the relevant
authorities," Flydubai said in a statement. 
    The airspace and airport closures in Iran compounded a
difficult week for Dubai-based carriers after record rainfall in
the United Arab Emirates.
    Since Tuesday, 1,478 flights have been cancelled to and from
Dubai, approximately 30% of all flights, according to
FlightRadar24.
    Many Western and Asian airlines had already been steering
clear of Iran and its airspace before the Israeli attack, which
came days after Iran's missile and drone attack on Israel.
    Germany's Lufthansa  LHAG.DE  on Wednesday extended a
suspension of flights to Tehran until the end of the month,
citing ongoing security concerns in the region.
    Australia's Qantas Airways  QAN.AX  said on Saturday it was
rerouting flights between Perth and London on concerns about the
Middle East, adding a fuel stop in Singapore as it avoided
Iran's airspace.
    Taiwan's China Airlines  2610.TW  said in a statement that
it "continues to pay attention to the situation as it develops
and plans the most appropriate routes in accordance with the
recommendations of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency".
    Taiwan's EVA Air  2618.TW  told Reuters that its flights had
already been avoiding Iranian air space.
    Etihad Airways, which does not fly to Iran, said it
"continuously monitors security and airspace updates, safety is
always our highest priority and we would never operate a flight
unless it was safe to do so.”

 (Reporting by Jamie Freed in Sydney; Additional reporting by
Alexander Cornwell, Jana Choukeir in Dubai and Ben Blanchard in
Taipei; Editing by William Mallard)
 ((Jamie.Freed@thomsonreuters.com;))