Lufthansa announced Thursday afternoon that its nighttime flights to and from Israel will continue operating with a stopover in Athens until March 6, amid rising regional tensions and the possibility of a U.S. strike on Iran.
The German carrier said that its night service will maintain the current routing, which includes a layover in the Greek capital, resulting in longer overall travel times. Updated arrival times are reflected in booking systems.
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Luftansa's special overnight flight format will add travel time to Israel
(Photo: Markus Mainka / Shutterstock)
Swiss International Air Lines, also part of the Lufthansa Group, will operate its nighttime flights under the same format through March 6, the company said.
In contrast, Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines — two other carriers within the European aviation group — continue to operate direct flights to and from Tel Aviv without stopovers.
“The Lufthansa Group, which includes Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings, continues to closely monitor developments and adjust its operations accordingly,” the company said in a statement. “The safety of our passengers and crew members is always our top priority.”
In addition, due to the security tensions in the Middle East, Spanish airline Iberia Express — a subsidiary of Spain’s national carrier Iberia — is operating only one daily flight to Israel. All other airlines are currently operating as usual.