American Airlines and Delta Air Lines will continue to pause flights to Israel, while other airlines are seeking new routes as tensions rise in the Middle East.

With no end in sight to the hostilities in Israel, airlines are still practicing an abundance of caution throughout the Middle East.

Two U.S. carriers say they will hold off on their flights to Israel for the near future, while other carriers are seeking routes that avoid the space between Israel and Iran.

Airlines Say No to Israel Flights, Iran Airspace

At least two U.S. carriers say they are going to continue holding back flights to Israel through at least October 31, 2024, based on the current conditions. The Associated Press reports both American Airlines and Delta Air Lines are cancelling flights for an extended period of time.

Delta is pushing back a decision to October 31, 2024, and say they will make a further decision “based on security guidelines and intelligence reports.” For American, their pause on Israel flights will run through March 29, 2025. Delta says they are working with partners Air France and El Al to accommodate flyers, while American is working with their European alliance partners to continue to Israel.

The decisions come as airlines are starting to find new routes around the Middle East to avoid areas of possible conflict. According to Reuters, at least three carriers – British Airways, Lufthansa, and Singapore Airlines – have decided to route over Afghanistan instead of flying through Iran’s airspace.

Although air traffic control services have been suspended over Afghanistan over the last three years, the airlines believe that it is a safer route given the circumstances. With Russian airspace closed to most carriers and escalated tension between Israel and Iran, airlines believe this routing expose them to the least risk.

“As conflicts have evolved, the calculus of which airspace to use has changed,” Ian Petchenik from Flightradar24 told Reuters. “Airlines are seeking to mitigate risk as much as possible and they see overflying Afghanistan as the safer option given the current tensions between Iran and Israel.”

According to Flightradar24 data, over 100 flights begun flying over Afghanistan and avoiding Iran since the end of July 2024.

Feature image courtesy: Josue Isai Ramos Figueroa on Unsplash