European airlines are cancelling flights to Israel in the wake of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that erupted at the end of the week, and investors are dumping shares in the sector, Világgazdaság writes.
Shareholders in European airlines were facing heavy losses on Monday after investors dumped a large number of shares in the sector following the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that erupted last week. Airlines have been cancelling or suspending flights to Israel since the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas launched attacks on Saturday morning, causing hundreds of deaths, and Israel has responded by imposing a state of war and a total blockade of Gaza, promising retaliation.
Wizz Air’s share price fell 6.2 percent by Monday 3:30 p.m., Irish rival Ryanair’s shares were down 3 percent, British EasyJet shares were down 5.4 percent. Air France KLM suffered similar losses. Lufthansa shares fell 4 percent, and British Airways parent company IAG lost 5.5 percent.
Meanwhile, European airlines have also been quick to respond to the emergency, with Britain’s EasyJet halting flights to Tel Aviv on Sunday and saying it would modify its schedule in the coming days. The Hungarian-backed low-cost carrier Wizz Air will not operate flights to the Israeli city either, and will not fly from there until further notice.
According to Irish brokerage house Goodbody, Wizz Air is the most affected by the conflict, as its flights account for 9.4 percent of Israel’s total capacity in October and 2.3 percent of its own traffic to the country.
Lufthansa Group, another of the most affected companies, has cancelled its flights to and from Tel Aviv. The Portuguese airline TAP has suspended flights until Monday, and passengers have the choice between a refund or rebooking free of charge. Among European airlines, Air France and Finnair have also suspended flights.
Virgin Atlantic of the US will continue to operate some of its flights to Israel, but passengers will still have the option of requesting a refund or rescheduling until October 15. Several airlines are still flying to Israel despite the situation, with Ryanair, flyDubai, and the Israeli national airline El Al among others landing at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport on Monday, based on the flight tracking site Flightradar24. The Israel Airports Authority, when contacted by Reuters, said that it was continuing to handle arrivals and departures, but it was not clear from their response whether additional security measures had been implemented.
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