Skift Take
U.S. carriers are halting flights to Tel Aviv after the killing of a Hamas political leader sparked concerns that a war could break out in the region.
Key Points
- Delta and United Airlines suspend flights to Tel Aviv due to rising Middle East tensions.
- United halts service starting Wednesday evening; Delta pauses until August 2 with travel waivers issued.
- Suspension follows the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, escalating regional threats.
Summary
Delta Air Lines and United Airlines have suspended their flights to Tel Aviv due to escalating tensions in the Middle East. United plans to pause its service starting Wednesday evening for security reasons and will monitor the situation closely before resuming. Delta has halted flights until at least August 2 and is issuing travel waivers to affected passengers. The suspension follows the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, which has heightened regional tensions and threats of retaliation against Israel.
Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are pausing flights to Tel Aviv as tensions escalate in the Middle East.
United plans to suspend service to Tel Aviv starting Wednesday evening, a spokesperson told Skift. The carrier said it will suspend flights to the Israeli city until further notice for “security reasons.”
“Beginning with this evening’s flight from Newark Liberty to Tel Aviv, we are suspending for security reasons our daily Tel Aviv service as we evaluate our next steps,” the United spokesperson said. “We continue to closely monitor the situation and will make decisions on resuming service with a focus on the safety of our customers and crews.”
Delta is pausing flights to Tel Aviv until August 2, citing ongoing conflict in the region. The airline is also issuing travel waivers to those who had flights scheduled to Tel Aviv through August 14. El Al, a partner of Delta, is still operating flights to Israel.
The pause in flights to Israel comes after Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed while attending the inauguration of Iran’s new president. Now, Iran and its proxies are threatening to strike back at Israel for the assassination, according to The New York Times. Israel has not claimed responsibility for the strike.
United, along with other international carriers briefly paused flights to Israel in April after Iran launched an airstrike on Israel. Delta had only started flying to Tel Aviv in June.
Airlines Sector Stock Index Performance Year-to-Date
What am I looking at? The performance of airline sector stocks within the ST200. The index includes companies publicly traded across global markets including network carriers, low-cost carriers, and other related companies.
The Skift Travel 200 (ST200) combines the financial performance of nearly 200 travel companies worth more than a trillion dollars into a single number. See more airlines sector financial performance.
Have a confidential tip for Skift? Get in touch
Tags: delta air lines, indigo airlines, iran, israel, jet stream, tel aviv, united airlines
Photo credit: Delta and United planes landing. Bill Abbott/Flickr Bill Abbott / Flickr