SINGAPORE - Singapore Airlines (SIA) and budget carrier Scoot have stopped flying over Iranian airspace, after Iran on April 13 launched its first direct attack on Israeli territory.
The Israeli military said Iran has fired more than 300 drones and missiles at Tel Aviv since April 13.
A spokesperson for SIA told The Straits Times that as a precaution, both SIA and Scoot have been using alternative flight paths since 1pm Singapore time on April 13.
The SIA Group said its top priority is the safety of customers and its employees.
“We are closely monitoring the situation in the Middle East, and we will adjust our flight paths as needed,” the spokesperson said.
Responding to ST’s queries, the spokesperson said all SIA flights operating between Singapore and 14 destinations have been affected by the changes in flight paths. They are: Amsterdam, Brussels, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Istanbul, London, New York (JFK), New York (Newark), Manchester, Milan, Munich, Paris, Rome and Zurich. All Scoot flights operating between Singapore and Athens are also affected.
“Some flights may take slightly longer than usual,” said the spokesperson, who apologised for any inconvenience caused.
A spokesman for Changi Airport Group (CAG) told ST that those travelling should check with their airlines to see if their flights are affected.
The CAG spokesman said: “Other than the departure of TK169, which was delayed for about four hours, we have not observed any significant delays to arrival and departure flights today.”
TK169, a Turkish Airlines flight, was scheduled to depart Singapore for Istanbul at 4.30am on April 14. It eventually left Changi Airport at 8.30am.
Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways cancelled flights to Jordan and Israel on April 14, the airline said in a statement.
Swiss International Air Lines has suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv until further notice, the airline said in a post on social media platform X on April 14.
Swiss, which is owned by German carrier Lufthansa, said all of its planes were avoiding the airspace of Iran, Iraq and Israel, causing delays to flights from India and Singapore.
United Airlines cancelled an April 13 planned flight from Newark to Tel Aviv due to restrictions on Israeli airspace, the airline said in a statement.
United is the only major American airline to have resumed flights to Israel since the attacks by Hamas on Israel in October 2023.
The drone strikes followed Iran’s vow to retaliate over what it called an Israeli strike on its Damascus consulate on April 1, which killed seven members of its elite Revolutionary Guards, including two generals.
Israel has neither denied nor claimed responsibility for the strikes. On April 10, Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Israel will be punished for the attack.
On April 12, US President Joe Biden warned Iran against an attack, pledging Washington’s “ironclad” support for Israel.
After the strikes on April 13, Iran’s mission to the United Nations announced that the attack was now “deemed concluded”.
The Gaza war between Israel and Hamas has moved into its seventh month since Oct 7, 2023, when Hamas militants raided southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting some 250 others, according to Israeli tallies.
