British airlines suspend flights to Israel. Dangerous incident
British Airways announced the suspension of their flights to Israel. This decision was taken after one of the airline's aircraft was forced to turn around just before a planned landing in Tel Aviv. Virgin Atlantic Airlines also decided to take a similar step.
9:52 AM EDT, October 12, 2023
British Airways has released additional information about the incident that led to the suspension of flights. As explained, the plane serving flight BA165, which took off from London's Heathrow Airport towards Tel Aviv, was already in the process of landing when alarm sirens sounded in the Israeli city. These signals were a response to rockets fired by Palestinian Hamas. In the face of such developments, the decision was made to return the plane to the United Kingdom.
"Following the latest assessment of the situation, we are suspending our flights to and from Tel Aviv" - announced British Airways, which was one of the few large carriers still serving flights to Israel.
The Israeli aviation authorities have assured that there was no direct threat to the airplane or Ben Gurion Airport during the shelling of Tel Aviv. Nevertheless, Hamas insists that missiles fired by its fighters fell on the airport premises.
Another line suspends flights
On the same day, Virgin Atlantic lines also made the decision to suspend flights to Israel. For now, this suspension is expected to last for 72 hours.
The suspension of flights by both airlines presents a significant inconvenience for Britons currently in Israel who wish to return to their country. This situation is particularly complicated because the British government does not currently plan to organize evacuations.
