Virgin Atlantic has cancelled plans for a resumption of its Heathrow-Tel Aviv route as the conflict with Hamas continues.
The airline originally opened the route in 2019 but it was suspended shortly afterwards as the Covid pandemic took hold and it has subsequently been impacted by the military operation in Gaza which has particularly affected tourist traffic.
A statement from the airline said: “After careful consideration, our partners at Virgin Atlantic have taken the difficult decision to cancel services between London Heathrow and Tel Aviv.
“Virgin Atlantic will continue to serve Tel Aviv as the only UK airline to have a partnership with EL AL, Israel’s national carrier, on services between Tel Aviv Ben Gurion and London Heathrow.
“The codeshare partnership with EL AL offers connections between Israel, the UK and the US, specifically to Las Vegas, Miami, New York and Atlanta.
“This allows customers greater flexibility, frequencies with up to four daily flights, choice when selecting travel between Israel and the UK and reciprocal loyalty benefits.”
British Airways currently operates flights between Heathrow and Tel Aviv, while Wizz Air serves the city from Luton.
It is possible to buy flights on the Virgin website but they are operated by El-Al.
