A Lufthansa flight from Munich to Tel Aviv was unexpectedly diverted to Cyprus on Thursday, while an Austrian Airlines flight landed in Sofia instead of Ben Gurion Airport.
By Shimon Yaish Israel hayom and JNS staff
A Lufthansa flight from Munich to Israel made an unscheduled landing in Larnaca, Cyprus on Thursday morning due to heightened tensions in the region.
The airline gave passengers the option of disembarking in Larnaca, but did not offer them any assistance in completing their journey to Israel and informed them that their luggage would be returning to Munich with the plane, according to Israel’s Channel 12 News. Some 20 Israelis disembarked without their luggage, with the rest returning to Munich, according to the report.
A Lufthansa spokesperson provided the following statement: “Lufthansa flight LH682 from Munich to Tel Aviv, which is currently being routed through Larnaca for operational reasons, will return to Munich after landing in Larnaca at 2:43 a.m. (CEST) this morning. This diversion is a precautionary measure due to security-related activities. The planned connecting flight from Larnaca to Tel Aviv, as well as the return flight LH683 from Tel Aviv to Munich scheduled for today, have been canceled. We will offer alternative flights to all affected passengers. At this time, our remaining flights scheduled for today are proceeding as planned. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused. The safety of our passengers and crew remains our utmost priority.”
The move comes after the airline canceled two nighttime flights to Israel on Monday amid spiraling tensions between Israel and the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah. Lufthansa had previously canceled all service to Beirut until August 5.
In a parallel incident, an Austrian Airlines flight landed in Sofia instead of Ben Gurion Airport, similarly stranding passengers. Rachel, an Israeli passenger on the diverted Austrian flight, recounted her experience to Israel Hayom: “Approximately 40 minutes before we were due to land, we were informed of a change in our destination. They told us we would be landing in Bulgaria to refuel before returning to Vienna. Now, after more than six hours in the air, we’ve arrived in Vienna with no clear direction on what to do next.”
United and Delta Airlines are suspending their flights due to escalating security tensions in the region.
United and Delta Airlines announced Wednesday that they are suspending flights to Tel Aviv due to escalating security tensions in the Middle East.
The decision by the two American legacy carriers follows the back-to -back assassinations of a top Hezbollah leader in Lebanon and the Hamas political leader in Iran, and again leaves Israel’s flagship El Al as the only airline offering direct service to and from the United States.
“Beginning with this evening’s flight from Newark Liberty to Tel Aviv, we are suspending for security reasons our daily Tel Aviv service as we evaluate our next steps,” United Airlines said in a statement sent to JNS.
“We continue to closely monitor the situation and will make decisions on resuming service with a focus on the safety of our customers and crews,” it added.
The statement did not mention when the flights would resume.
Delta Airlines said it was suspending its daily flight to Israel through August 2 “due to the ongoing conflict in the region,” but noted that the flights can be rebooked on partner airlines El Al and Air France.
Most foreign carriers had suspended serviced to Israel following Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre and the ensuing war, but then slowly resumed service this spring.