The situation is becoming increasingly tense in the Middle East, but air connections are being maintained. A few hours after the call from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs this Friday, April 12 not to travel to Israel, Lebanon, Iran and the Palestinian territories, the French airlines flying there indicate that they are still maintaining their travel programs despite everything. flights.
“At this stage, Air France routes to and from Tel Aviv (Israel) and Beirut (Lebanon) are operating normally. Commercial measures are in place, allowing customers traveling until April 15, 2024 to postpone or cancel their trip free of charge",
indicates the company's management to Le
Figaro,
specifying however
"to follow in real time the evolution of the situation in the Middle East.
Air France currently connects each of the two destinations to Paris-Charles de Gaulle with one daily wide-body flight.
Same story with Air France's little low-cost sister, Transavia, which is still maintaining its program to Israel and Lebanon.
“Transavia France reiterates that the safety of its customers and crews is its absolute priority,”
specifies the company’s management. In Transavia's 2024 flight program, the following are planned and therefore maintained:
Orly - Tel Aviv: 1 daily flight
Orly-Beirut: 1 daily flight
Lyon-Beirut: 2 flights per week (Monday and Friday)
Marseille - Beirut: 1 flight per week (in April: Tuesday / in May: Wednesday)
Nice - Beirut: 1st flight on July 17: 1 flight per week (Wednesday)
Orly - Amman (Jordan): 1 flight per week (Saturday)
The two companies of the Air France-KLM group, after a period of complete cessation of their flights to Israel after October 7, both resumed their operations there at the start of 2024.
Note that the German company Lufthansa, which still served Iran, announced the suspension of its flights to and from Tehran.
Tourism at a standstill throughout the region
For their part, French tour operators are renewing their call not to visit the region. The two main professional unions in the sector, Travel Companies and the Tour-operating Companies Union (Seto), indicate to Le
Figaro
that they have not identified any French customers traveling in the region currently. In an internal memo, Seto recommends that tourism professionals suspend all customer departures to Israel until further notice.
Since October 7, tourist numbers in the Middle East have been almost non-existent, whether in Israel and Lebanon, but also in neighboring areas usually frequented by French tourists. Egypt and Jordan have experienced a sudden halt to their tourist numbers, with some French tour operators reporting drops of up to 80% compared to last year.