Tarom and Wizz Air suspend flights to Tel Aviv

Newsroom 22/07/2014 | 23:49

Tarom announced on Tuesday that it will suspend it’s RO 153/4 route Bucharest – Tel  Aviv – Bucharest, “because it cannot be operated in complete safety”, according to a press release from the company.

“As a result of the messages we received from authorities on the Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv, flight RO 153/4 Bucharest – Tel Aviv – Bucharest has been canceled. (…) Depending on how the situation ev0lves, we will keep you updated”, according to press release.

Tarom is the first Romanian air-carrier to change its operations in Israel, after several governmental agencies warned that passenger safety is at risk as turmoil in Israel and the region intensified.

Low cost carrier Wizz Air also announced on Tuesday that it will suspend its operations until Wednesday.

Following directions issued to US airlines by the FAA, Wizz Air has now decided to suspend its operations to Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport until midnightWednesday 23 July. Wizz Air continues to monitor the situation and any change will be advised in due course”, the low cost carrier said.

The FAA said it told U.S. carriers that they were prohibited from flying to or from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv for up to 24 hours. In a statement, the agency said its notice was issued in response to a rocket strike on Tuesday that landed about a mile from the airport.

The text of the FAA notice cited “the potentially hazardous situation created by the armed conflict in Israel and Gaza” in prohibiting the flights by U.S. carriers.

U.S. carriers Delta Air Lines, American Airlines Group and United Airlines were the first to announce cancellations, followed by flight stoppages by European carriers, including Germany’s Lufthansa and Air France .

Air Berlin, Germany’s second-largest carrier, also said it halted its flights through Wednesday, citing the situation on the ground. Throughout the day, several airlines rerouted or turned back flights already headed to Israel’s financial center.

Europe’s aviation regulator also warned airlines not to fly to Tel Aviv. A spokesman said the European Aviation Safety Agency would issue a bulletin by Wednesday containing a “strong recommendation” that airlines avoid Ben Gurion Airport.

“The recommendation applies to all European airlines,” the spokesman said in an email.

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