Key facts
- Air France has suspended flights to Riyadh, Dubai, and Beirut.
- The suspensions are due to the current security situation and potential airspace restrictions in the Middle East.
- Flights to Riyadh are suspended until July 24, Dubai until July 27, and Beirut until August 2.
- Air France is continuously monitoring the geopolitical situation to ensure flight safety.
- Other airlines like KLM, British Airways, and Singapore Airlines have also adjusted their Middle East operations.
Air France has confirmed the suspension of flights to Riyadh, Dubai, and Beirut due to the prevailing security situation in the Middle East and potential airspace restrictions. The airline stated it is monitoring the situation in real-time and will resume operations based on an assessment of the fluid security landscape.
The suspension for Riyadh flights is in effect until July 24, for Dubai until July 27, and for Beirut until August 2. Air France emphasized its continuous monitoring of geopolitical developments to maintain the highest level of flight safety.
Earlier, on July 14, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) advised airlines to avoid the airspace of Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, the UAE, and the Gulf of Oman, with this advisory remaining active until July 29. Many carriers are reportedly planning to resume services around late October, aligning with the aviation industry's northern winter timetable.
Other airlines have also implemented or extended flight suspensions and cancellations. KLM is not currently flying through the airspace of Iran, Iraq, and Israel, and has suspended flights to Dammam and Riyadh until August 23, and to Dubai. Aegean Airlines has cancelled flights to Dubai until August 31, and to Erbil and Baghdad until September 30. Singapore Airlines has extended its Dubai flight suspension until October 24, while its subsidiary Scoot cancelled flights to Jeddah until August 8. Philippine Airlines has suspended services between Manila and Dubai until October 2. British Airways has delayed the resumption of flights to Dubai, Tel Aviv, Bahrain, and Amman until October 25, with Riyadh resuming August 8. Air Canada flights to Dubai and Tel Aviv remain cancelled until October 24. Cathay Pacific plans to resume passenger flights to Dubai on October 25 and Riyadh on October 26. Latvian carrier airBaltic has cancelled flights to Dubai until October 24. Lufthansa Group is operating a reduced network, with SWISS postponing Tel Aviv flights until August and suspending Dubai flights until September 13, while Brussels Airlines suspended Tel Aviv services until October 24. Lufthansa and SWISS flights to Dubai are suspended until September 13.