A Middle East Airlines plane during a Beirut-Paris flight in October 2023. (Illustrative photo: Layal Dagher/L'Orient-Le Jour)
Smoke snaking up from the ground into the sky, missiles spotted from the window, flights urgently diverted... when Iran and Israel, around 1,500 kilometers away from each other, were deep into their exchange of missiles and bombs, the region's passenger planes were left in a tight spot.A cease-fire came into effect 12 days after Israel started its war with Iran on June 13, during which civil aviation was thrown up in the air: routes were unpredictable, marked by sudden closures and diversions, and pilots were under immense pressure.Iranian ballistic missiles traveled through the airspace of at least five different countries, including Lebanon, en route to targeting Israel. Amid heightened risks, many airlines suspended their service to Beirut, while others operate only on request. As the region wakes to the first day of the cease-fire —...
Smoke snaking up from the ground into the sky, missiles spotted from the window, flights urgently diverted... when Iran and Israel, around 1,500 kilometers away from each other, were deep into their exchange of missiles and bombs, the region's passenger planes were left in a tight spot.A cease-fire came into effect 12 days after Israel started its war with Iran on June 13, during which civil aviation was thrown up in the air: routes were unpredictable, marked by sudden closures and diversions, and pilots were under immense pressure.Iranian ballistic missiles traveled through the airspace of at least five different countries, including Lebanon, en route to targeting Israel. Amid heightened risks, many airlines suspended their service to Beirut, while others operate only on request. As the region wakes to the first day of the cease-fire...
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