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Houthi missile attack on Israeli airport forces Air India Delhi-Tel Aviv flight to divert to Abu Dhabi; airline suspends Tel Aviv flights till May 6
As per information available on flight tracking website Flightradar24.com, the flight was in the Jordanian airspace when it was decided to divert the flight to Abu Dhabi.
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(File)A missile attack on Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport forced an Air India flight from Delhi to Tel Aviv to divert to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, and will be returning to Delhi from there. In view of the incident, the Tata group airline has suspended services to and from the Israeli city till Tuesday (May 6).
According to international media reports, a ballistic missile launched by Yemen-based Houthi militia hit the perimeter of the Ben Gurion International Airport—the busiest airport in Israel—leaving a few people injured. The Houthis, while claiming responsibility for the attack, also reportedly warned airlines that the Tel Aviv airport was not safe for travel. The Houthis have been launching attacks against Israel over the latter’s military offensive in Gaza.
Sunday morning’s attack led to a brief suspension of flight operations at the Tel Aviv airport, leading to some of the flights being diverted to other airports. Air India’s flight AI139 from Delhi to Tel Aviv was among the flights that had to be diverted. According to flight tracking data, the flight—being operated with a Boeing 787—was in Jordanian airspace and about an hour away from Tel Aviv when it was diverted to Abu Dhabi.
Consequent to developments in Tel Aviv this morning, our operations to and from Tel Aviv will remain suspended with immediate effect till 6th May 2025, to ensure the safety of our customers and staff. Our colleagues on ground are assisting customers and helping…
— Air India (@airindia) May 4, 2025
“Air India flight AI139 from Delhi to Tel Aviv of 4 May 2025 was diverted to Abu Dhabi after an incident at Ben Gurion airport this morning. The flight has landed normally in Abu Dhabi and will soon return to Delhi.
Consequently, our operations to and from Tel Aviv will remain suspended with immediate effect till 6 May 2025, to ensure the safety of our customers and staff. Our staff on ground is assisting customers and helping them with alternative arrangements,” an Air India spokesperson said.
“Customers booked on our flights with valid tickets between 4 and 6 May 2025 will be offered a one-time waiver on rescheduling or full refunds for cancellation. We would like to reiterate that at Air India, the safety of our customers and crew remains top priority,” the airline’s spokesperson added.
Air India is the only Indian airline that operates flights to Israel. The carrier had resumed its Delhi-Tel Aviv daily service on March 2 this year. The service had been suspended early August of last year amid a flare-up in tensions between Israel and Iran. The months prior to that had also seen the flight being suspended for varying periods due to the regional conflict.
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