Israel’s airspace has been closed to commercial airlines since yesterday morning due to the security developments. Officially Ben Gurion airport is closed until Monday at 8pm and all flights by both domestic and foreign carriers are canceled until then.
Foreign airlines have already begun to respond with longer-term cancellations than the current closure date, and some are suspending operations for extended periods of time beyond the first 48 hours. Thus, the Lufthansa Group and Wizz Air announced that they have canceled all flights to Israel until March 7th inclusive. KLM suspended all flights last week even before the airstrikes on Iran began.
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The EU Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) has issued a CZIB (Conflict Zone Information Bulletin) that includes an instruction for European airlines not to operate at all altitudes in the airspace of a number of countries in the region, including Israel. The binding instruction is valid until tomorrow (March 2, 2026).
The practical meaning is that if it is decided to extend its validity, the wave of cancellations by European airlines will continue even if Israeli airspace is reopened.
Israel is not alone – the announcement includes the airspace of Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain. Therefore, Israelis looking to return home via Aqaba will not be able to do so until at least tomorrow night.
Meanwhile Arkia is operating flights between Taba in Egypt and Athens, although the Israel National Security Council recommends that Israelis do not cross the Egypt-Israel border crossing at Taba south of Eilat due to heightened security concerns in the Sinai peninsula.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on March 1, 2026.
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2026.
