Air India’s Delhi-Tel Aviv route remains suspended until September 30, the airline has confirmed, citing continuing security risks and airspace challenges across West Asia.
The route had previously been suspended only through the end of July, with many expecting a resumption around now, but the airline has extended the timeline by a further two months.
This is at least the third extension of the suspension, which was first pushed to the end of May before being moved to the end of July.
More than 40,000 Indian nationals in Israel remain affected by the continued suspension, according to figures cited in reports on the disruption.
With direct flights unavailable, passengers travelling between India and Israel must currently route through hubs such as Dubai or Abu Dhabi, adding four to eight hours to journey times.
Air India said it would reassess the security situation closer to the new target date before resuming ticket sales for the route.
The airline continues to offer full refunds to passengers with affected bookings.
The extension follows ongoing coordination between international aviation bodies and India’s Ministry of External Affairs on the regional security situation.
Israel’s El Al has been running full operations since Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv reopened fully in April after a ceasefire, even as Air India keeps its own Delhi-Tel Aviv service on hold.
Several other major international carriers have also kept their Tel Aviv services suspended or scaled back in recent months, underscoring continued caution across the industry around the region’s airspace despite the ceasefire.
Air India had originally suspended its Delhi-Tel Aviv route in response to escalating regional tensions, and has pushed back the resumption date multiple times since as the security situation in West Asia has failed to stabilise.
Passengers travelling between India and Israel currently have to route through third-country hubs such as Dubai or Abu Dhabi, adding several hours to journey times compared with the previous direct service.
(Image: Photo by Eluveitie (Beata May), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)
