British airline Virgin Atlantic announced on Thursday it will resume flights to Israel from London starting on September 25. The company, which halted flights to Israel on October 11, will operate a daily flight to Israel seven days a week using wide-body aircraft with three service classes: Economy, Premium, and Upper Class (business class with lie-flat seats).
Flights from London to Tel Aviv will make a stop of about 90 minutes in Larnaca for crew shifts, while flights from Tel Aviv to London will be direct. The company also noted that "in conjunction with the code-share agreement between Virgin Atlantic and El Al, Virgin Atlantic offers up to four daily flights to London Heathrow. Through its partnership in the SkyTeam Airline Alliance, Virgin Atlantic flights can connect to hundreds of destinations worldwide.”
Airlines operating or withholding flights to Israel
Last week, Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair announced it would not resume flights to Israel at least until the end of October at the earliest. Ryanair canceled all its flights to Israel in early August due to the escalation in security following the targeted killings of Hezbollah and Hamas leaders in Beirut and Tehran. The company had planned to resume flights in October, but earlier later extended cancellations until October 26, with no clear return date.
On the other hand, the Lufthansa Group, which includes Lufthansa Airlines, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings, resumed flights to and from Israel this month. Poland's national airline LOT Polish Airlines and Italy's ITA Airways also resumed flights to Israel last week.
The following airlines have also resumed operations in Israel in recent weeks: British Airways, Air France, Aegean Airlines, Iberia Express, Wizz Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Cordon and Tarom. However, many airlines continue to avoid flying to Israel.
Dutch airline Transavia has canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv until March 31, 2025. Air India, India’s national airline announced it will not resume flights to Israel until October 24. Delta Air Lines has extended its flight cancellations from New York to Israel until October 31. United Airlines said it won’t resume flights to Israel until further notice.
American Airlines announced it will not resume flights to Israel until the end of March 2025. Spanish low-cost carrier Vueling will not return until October 26. Croatia Airlines will not resume flights to Israel until further notice.
British low-cost airline EasyJet, which suspended flights to Israel after October 7, has announced it will not resume flights to Tel Aviv until April 2025. Customers who booked tickets between October 27, 2024, and March 29, 2025, will be offered options, including a full refund for their tickets.
Latvian airline Air Baltic will not resume flights until at least September 15. KLM has announced it will return to Israel on October 27.