With the conflict between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas close to reaching its one-year anniversary and showing no end in sight, airlines that initially sought to restart their service to the country are displaying hesitation.
While Delta Air Lines (DAL) , American Airlines (AAL) and United Airlines UAL have all suspended flights to Israel itself and nearby Middle Eastern countries such as Jordan following the Oct. 7, 2023 attack that left more than 1,400 Israelis dead and prompted the government’s military response in Gaza, they have slowly started resuming them in the fall.
Flights disappear from booking systems, airline yet to confirm
Out of the three main U.S.-based carriers to Israel, United was the first to restart its Newark-Tel Aviv flight back in February while Delta followed soon after with flights of its own. American was the last to commit to resuming its Israel service in October 2024 but just reversed course and pushed that back until at least April 2025.
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Israeli news outlet Israeli Hayom initially reported that American Airlines flights have disappeared from airport booking systems until that date. The airline itself has not yet confirmed the decision but previously said that while it will not yet fly there directly, it “will continue to work closely with our partner airlines to assist customers traveling between Israel and European cities with service to the U.S.”
The decision follows multiple international airlines once again canceling their flights to Italy following a new attack on a village in the Golan Heights that left 12 children dead at the end of July and raised the risk of a wider war between Israel and Lebanon.
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These are some of the other airlines canceling their Israel flights
German flagship carrier, Lufthansa (DLAKF) canceled its flights to Tel Aviv from Frankfurt and Munich and its flight to Beirut throughout August while Air France-KLM (AFRAF) said that it was "monitoring the situation in Lebanon in real-time” and followed soon after.
U.S. carriers do not currently fly to Lebanon directly and are continuing to monitor the situation with Israel and adjust depending on what are often last-minute changes. The latest calculation shows that at least 20 international airlines have canceled their flights to Israel after resuming them earlier this year amid added fears of Iranian retaliation following the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh on July 31.
Delta and United suspended flights to Tel Aviv until Aug. 31 but have not yet made any statements about whether they will resume service or extend the suspension further once that date passes.
“Delta flights between New York-JFK and Tel Aviv will be paused through Aug. 31, due to ongoing conflict in the region,” the airline said in a statement on the changes. “Sales of these flights are suspended. Customers impacted by the schedule change will receive notifications via the Fly Delta app and contact information listed in their reservation.
Delta also added that those who need to go to the region may still be able to do so by booking flights through either Air France or Israel’s flagship carrier El Al (ELALF) which provides the most consistent service to the country.
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