Brits going on holiday issued warning after ‘biggest single disruption to air travel since 2001’

With the summer season approaching, you might be looking forward to a holiday.

But wherever you are planning on flying out to, there’s a warning issued after the ‘biggest single disruption to air travel since 2001’.

That was, of course, the year of the 9/11 terror attacks against the US following the attacks carried out by Al-Qaeda.

Air spaces were closed down and flights around the world were disrupted for quite a while.

Many flights will be disrupted. (Getty stock image)

And now, an expert says we’re looking at a similar level of disruption – potentially effecting your holiday plans – following an attack from Iran on Israel.

With around 300 missiles and drones launched on Saturday (13 April), Israel closed its airspace.

Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq also closed theirs, but they’ve all since reopened.

The airspace of the Middle Eastern country is often used by airlines travelling between Europe and Asia. Therefore, airlines are going to have to redirect flights to avoid it – instead, they’ll likely have to travel through Egypt or Turkey instead.

OPSGROUP founder, which monitors airports and airspace, Mark Zee, called this the biggest single disruption to air travel since the 9/11 terrorist attacks over 22 years ago.

“Not since then have we had a situation with that many different air spaces closed down in that quick succession, and that creates chaos,” he told Reuters.

Zee warned that these disruptions to flights are expected to last for the next couple of days.

Cancellations are primarily going to affect anyone travelling to and from Israel and Jordan, while some have resumed today.

Some travel is currently advised against. (Getty stock image)

Brits can also expect most flights from the UK to Asia to take a longer amount of time.

Airlines reportedly facing disruption at the moment are as follows:

· Air Canada

· easyJet

· Finnair

· Iberia Express

· KLM

· Lufthansa

· Wizz Air

· Qantas

· Virgin Atlantic

British Airways told the BBC there would be a flight to Tel Aviv today but is keeping the situation under review.

easyJet has suspended all of its flights to and from Tel Aviv until the end of Sunday 21 April.

Wizz Air says it will resume flights to Israel tomorrow (16 April) but warns: “Passengers may experience some schedule changes.”

The UK Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to parts of Israel.

Topics: Travel, Holiday, UK News, World News

Jess Battison

Jess is an Entertainment Journalist with a love of all things pop culture. Her main interests include keeping up with the Twitter girlies, waiting for a new series of The Traitors and losing her voice at a Beyoncé concert. She graduated with a first in Journalism from City, University of London in 2021 and has previously worked at MyLondon.

@jessbattison_