After the US State Department issued a travel warning for Israel, and after a rocket exploded less than two kilometers from Ben Gurion Airport, the FAA, the US Federal Aviation Administration, ordered American airlines flying to Israel to cancel their flights to the country until further notice.
Among the companies that will stop flying: Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and USAirrs.
A Delta Air Lines flight that was en route to Israel at the time of the decision landed in Paris.
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The Federal Aviation Administration is directed to automatically cancel all flights departing from the United States to airports in risk areas.
Ben Gurion Airport became a risk area when the rocket fell in Yehud - about a kilometer from the airport.
Swiss, Lufthansa and Austrian Air also announced that they are temporarily suspending flights to Israel. The announcement stated that the cancellation will be reviewed within the next 48 hours.
Other companies that have canceled flights: Air France is suspending its flights to Tel Aviv. The company's representative in Israel said: "The company is vigilantly monitoring the situation and is in contact with the relevant authorities. The safety of passengers and crew is of utmost importance.".
So did KLM, which canceled a flight from Amsterdam to Tel Aviv this evening "due to an uncertain situation near Ben Gurion Airport." Air Canada also canceled flights.
Russian airlines that operate regular flights to Israel will not cancel them, a source in the Russian aviation ministry told a local news site that flights to and from Israel are subject to approval by the Israeli authorities, "as long as they approve, we fly." British Airways also announced that its flights will operate as usual.
Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a Jew, called on the US Federal Aviation Administration to allow airlines to fly to Israel. Bloomberg announced that he would fly himself with El Al to Tel Aviv to "show solidarity with the people of Israel and to prove that it is safe to fly to and from Israel." According to Bloomberg, "The US flight restrictions are a mistake that gives Hamas a victory. The US must lift them immediately.".
An aviation industry source told 'Globes: "All of this happened because of the missile that was fired today at Yehud, near Ben Gurion Airport. This is a terrible deterioration in the situation.".
The Airports Authority stated: "The American aviation administrator and, following him, some of the European airlines, have decided to suspend flights to Israel in the next 24 hours. For more information, please contact the airlines and travel agents. In addition, until Saturday, July 26th at midnight, all international flights from Terminal 1 will be transferred to Terminal 3. There will be no change in domestic operations.""
