Swiss has extended the suspension of its flights to Dubai and Tel Aviv until May 31st, citing security concerns amid persistent tensions in the Middle East.
The move forms part of a broader decision by the Lufthansa Group, which includes Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, ITA Airways, Edelweiss and Lufthansa Cargo, to curtail operations across the region. Most group airlines will suspend flights to Middle Eastern destinations until April 30th, with longer suspensions on several routes.
Flights to Dubai and Tel Aviv are halted until May 31st, though Lufthansa Cargo will resume Tel Aviv services earlier, on April 30th. Services to Abu Dhabi, Amman, Beirut, Dammam, Riyadh, Erbil, Muscat and Tehran are suspended until October 24th.
Eurowings, a low-cost subsidiary, has adopted a similar approach. It plans to suspend flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut and Erbil until April 30th, and to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Amman until October 24th.
Swiss said affected passengers may rebook free of charge or request a full refund. The airline, owned by Germany’s Lufthansa, had already extended its Dubai suspension on March 12th, at the time pushing it to March 28th.
Other carriers are making rolling adjustments. Qatar Airways has progressively cancelled all scheduled flights between Switzerland and Doha since hostilities in the Gulf began. Emirates and Etihad continue to operate reduced services to Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively, but with a majority of scheduled flights cancelled.
With the situation evolving, travel to and through the Gulf remains highly uncertain.
More on this:
Swiss announcement (in English)
For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter.