Airlines Reroute Flights as Iran Closes Airspace After Israeli Attack

Airlines quickly rerouted flights and diverted planes on Friday in response to airspace and airport closures in Iran following an Israeli attack. Iran closed its airports in Tehran, Shiraz, and Isfahan, and cleared flights from the western portion of its airspace for a few hours.

Flydubai cancelled its Friday flights to Iran, and an Iran Air flight from Rome to Tehran was diverted to Ankara, Turkey. The airspace and airport closures compounded a difficult week for Dubai-based carriers due to record rainfall in the United Arab Emirates. Many airlines had already been avoiding Iran's airspace before the attack, with Lufthansa, Qantas, and China Airlines monitoring the situation and planning appropriate routes.

Iranian state media reported commercial flight diversions and the sound of explosions in or near the city of Isfahan overnight, but the cause was not yet clear. The head of Iran's space agency said several small drones were shot down by Iran's air defenses, and there was no missile attack. State television said nuclear facilities in Iran were unharmed.

Why this matters: The incident has raised concerns about the risks of the Israel-Gaza war spreading into the rest of the region, with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi warning Israel that Tehran would deliver a severe response to any attack on its territory. Regional tensions have increased since the latest Israel-Hamas war that started in October 2023.

U.S. officials confirmed to ABC News that Israeli missiles had hit a site in Iran, after Iran launched drones and missiles at Israeli airspace over the weekend. Isfahan is Israel's third most populous city and a major industrial hub, with an Iranian airbase and sites associated with Iran's nuclear program.

The U.S. and Britain announced new sanctions on Iran, while the EU vowed to ramp up sanctions to target Iran's drone and missile deliveries to proxies. Dubai-based airlines Emirates and FlyDubai began diverting around western Iran as a precaution. The situation remains unclear, with no official confirmation from Iran or Israel about the nature of the incident in Isfahan.

Key Takeaways

• Iran closed airspace, airports after Israeli attack on Isfahan
• Airlines rerouted flights, canceled Iran trips due to closures
• Iran shot down drones, no missile attack on nuclear sites
• Israel-Gaza war raises regional tensions, U.S. confirms Israeli strikes
• New sanctions on Iran, airlines divert flights as precaution