Vistara Airlines’ last flight takes off from Odisha for Delhi
The last flight of Vistara Airlines from Odisha took off for Delhi on Monday night. This marked the end of the airline's operations from the state ahead of its merger with Air India.
A new issue has arisen for the airlines businesses globally amid the Iran-Israel war heat as most of them are looking for an alternate option to fly between Europe and Asia.
Multiple nations in the region have shut their airspaces in the wake of the first direct Iranian attack on Israel from its soil.
According to the reports, Middle Eastern countries including Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon announced closures of their airspace as Iran launched drones and missiles. These fall in the key route connecting Asia with the European world.
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Further, both Israel and Iran also imposed restrictions on airline traffic over their airspace.
The rerouting is a difficult task as they need to find alternative routes in a quick time and it will also lead to prolonged flight times and add to fuel costs.
Qantas Airways, Singapore Airlines and Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Kuwait Airways are a few of the airlines who are diverting flights away from tension areas.
Swiss International Air Lines said it will suspend Tel Aviv flights until further notice, and all its aircraft will avoid Iran, Iraq and Israeli airspace.
Lufthansa has also suspended flights to Tehran, a move followed by Austrian Airlines.
Qantas also temporarily adjusted its direct Perth-London flights to stop over in Singapore to account for the extra fuel needed to re-route around the volatile region.
Cathay Pacific Ltd. is also watching the situation in the Middle East closely, but its operations remain normal.
Notably, Israel has shut down its airspace for both domestic and international routes on Saturday, before reopening them Sunday morning.
Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq had also temporarily closed their airspace for incoming, outgoing and transit flights as a precautionary measure.
Further, Amman also extended the closure for several hours, citing growing risks in the region.
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