(Adds EASA recommendation)
By David Shepardson and Allison Lampert
WASHINGTON/MONTREAL, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Major airlines
cancelled Iran and Iraq flights on Wednesday and re-routed
others away from both countries' airspace following an Iranian
missile strike on U.S.-led forces in Iraq.
Germany's Lufthansa, Dubai-based Emirates and
low-cost flydubai were among airlines that cancelled flights, as
the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration barred American
carriers from the area. But several other carriers continued
operations over the affected airspace.
Iran early on Wednesday fired more than a dozen ballistic
missiles from its territory targeting at least two Iraqi
military bases hosting U.S.-led coalition personnel, the U.S.
military said.
Within hours, the FAA barred U.S. carriers from airspace
over Iran, the Gulf of Oman and the waters between Iran and
Saudi Arabia, citing "heightened military activities and
increased political tensions in the Middle East, which present
an inadvertent risk to U.S. civil aviation operations".
The flight ban came shortly before a Ukraine International
Airlines Boeing 737 burst into flames shortly after
take-off from Tehran, killing all 176 people aboard in a crash
blamed by Ukrainian authorities on an engine failure.
Non-U.S. operators are not bound by the FAA decision, but
they and other regulators consider its advice carefully when
determining where to fly. Later on Wednesday, the EU Aviation
Safety Agency (EASA) recommended to national authorities that
European carriers avoid Iraqi airspace.
Airlines have taken more steps to avoid flying over conflict
zones since 2014, when Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 was downed
by a missile launched from Ukraine, killing 298 people. But
re-routing increases flight times and burns extra
fuel.
Australia's Qantas Airways said on Wednesday it
would add 50 minutes to its Perth-London flight time and cut
passenger numbers to carry more fuel as it re-routes around Iran
and Iraq.
The FAA had already prohibited U.S. carriers from Iranian
airspace and from flying below 26,000 feet over Iraq, after Iran
shot down a high-altitude U.S. drone last June.
Lufthansa dropped its next scheduled flights to Erbil in
northern Iraq and to Tehran but said services to the Iranian
capital would resume on Thursday, although overflights will
continue to be re-routed to avoid both countries' airspace.
Air France-KLM, which axed its Tehran service in
2018, said it was also suspending Air France flights through
Iranian and Iraqi airspace "as a precautionary measure".
British Airways said a small number of its flights
would be affected by re-routing, without elaborating. Virgin
Atlantic, Singapore Airlines Ltd, Malaysia Airlines,
Air Canada and Taiwan's China Airlines were
also among carriers that re-routed flights.
"As a result, flight times to and from Mumbai may be
slightly longer than expected," a Virgin spokeswoman said.
Other major airlines maintained flights over Iraq and Iran
but said they were actively monitoring the situation.
As of 0830 GMT, airlines still flying over either country
included Qatar Airways, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Turkish
Airlines, flydubai, Air Arabia and low-cost long-haul carrier
Norwegian Air, according to FlightRadar24 data.
Norwegian, whose Dubai flights routinely cross Iran,
nonetheless said it was "looking at alternative routes" for
flights departing Scandinavia later in the day. "The safety and
security for our passengers and crew is always our number one
priority," it added.
While Emirates and flydubai each cancelled a return flight
to Baghdad, Qatar Airways said its flights to Iraq were
operating normally.
The use of Iranian and Iraqi airspace is particularly
critical for the Qatari carrier, banned from flying over Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain since mid-2017 as
the result of a damaging political dispute with its neighbours.
OPSGROUP, which advises airlines on security, said the new
U.S. flight bans were "significant", particularly given that the
entire over-water airspace in the region is now unavailable.
"Flights headed to and from the main airports in the region
such as Dubai will now need to route through Saudi Arabia's
airspace," it said on its website.
(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal and David Shepardson
in Washington; Additional reporting by Tracy Rucinski in
Chicago, Heekyong Yang in Seoul, Aradhana Aravindan in
Singapore, Chayut Setboonsarng in Bangkok, Aditi Shah in New
Delhi, Liz Lee in Kuala Lumpur, Yimou Lee in Taipei, Alexander
Cornwell in Dubai and Ilona Wissenbach in Frankfurt, Sarah Young
in London and Terje Solsvik in Oslo; Writing by Jamie Freed and
Laurence Frost; Editing by David Gregorio, Gerry Doyle and Hugh
Lawson/Mark Heinrich)
International Airlines (IAG)
