Suspensions of flights to Israel continue, with Lufthansa Group announcing an extension of its current schedule interruption until 8 June 2025. Although US majors such as Delta and American have resumed flights in recent days, United has prolonged its suspension and the German group has found “the current situation” in the Middle East still not secure enough to drop the no-fly rule. It means no routes operated by any of the group’s members will depart from or arrive in Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv up to at least the end of the first week in June.
The Israel-Hamas war and regional violence led to the cancellation of nearly all international airline services from October 2023, but from early 2025, amid ceasefire arrangements, the sector saw a gradual return of commercial aviation in and out of Israel.
That peace has proved fragile however, with hostilities ongoing and a strike by a Yemeni Houthi ballistic missile on Ben Gurion in early May leading to further suspensions. Thousands of Israelis have been stranded abroad as a result and in early May, Israel’s Transportation Minister Miri Regev held an emergency meeting with the heads of Israeli carriers in an attempt to stabilise the market.
BREAKING:
— Megatron (@Megatron_ron) May 4, 2025
🇮🇱🇾🇪 A direct Yemeni hypersonic missile hit near Ben Gurion airport, evading Israeli and US defences pic.twitter.com/2HBmhAMWa1
The precarious security situation means Lufthansa’s family of carriers, including Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings, and SWISS, has decided to prolong its current suspension by two weeks, from the previously announced end date of 25 May, to 8 June 2025.
Passengers booked on flights that have been cancelled or will be wiped from schedules, are able to obtain a refund or reschedule their travel for a later date, the airline has said, promising that “Affected guests will be notified and rebooked on alternative flights, subject to availability.”
The news comes just a day after Ryanair’s boss Michael O’Leary expressed frustration with the frequent disruptions to Israel services. Ryanair, like a range of other airlines including British Airways , recommenced services to Israel in March 2025, only to suspend them again two months later.
O’Leary said the low-cost Irish carrier was “losing patience” with the security problems at Ben Gurion Airport and could decide to divert services elsewhere as a result. “I think we’re running out of patience too with Israel… flights to and from Tel Aviv,” he said after a full-year results briefing. “If they’re going to keep being disrupted by these security disruptions, frankly, we’d be better off sending those aircraft somewhere else in Europe,” he added.
