Air Canada cancels Israel flight for second straight day

The U.S .Federal Aviation Administration has extended its ban on flights.

For the second straight day, Air Canada has cancelled its daily flight to Israel.

“Tonight’s scheduled Tel Aviv flight AC84 [Toronto to Tel Aviv] has been cancelled,” Air Canada spokesperson Isabelle Arthur told The CJN via e-mail Wednesday.

Also cancelled is Thursday’s return flight, AC85, from Tel Aviv to Toronto, Arthur added.

“We will continue to evaluate the situation going forward, and provide updates as needed,” she said.

Air Canada cancelled its flight from Toronto to Tel Aviv on Tuesday as well, following the lead of major U.S. airlines which announced suspension of flights to Israel after a rocket fired from Gaza that landed less than six miles from Ben-Gurion International Airport, causing extensive damage to two homes.

Asked whether its flights to and from Israel continue undisrupted, an El Al representative in Toronto said, “of course.”

In the United States, where flights on major carriers were suspended yesterday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has extended its ban on U.S. airlines’ flights to and from Tel Aviv, Israel, for another 24 hours. The ban now runs through 12:15 p.m. eastern time on Thursday, the FAA said.

In Canada, “these are decisions that are taken by airlines themselves,” Ben Stanford, a spokesman for Transport Canada, told The CJN.

Germany’s Lufthansa on Wednesday suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv for an additional 24 hours. The decision also applies to Germanwings, Austrian Airlines, Swiss and Brussels Airlines. Air France and Dutch carrier KLM have also suspended flights to Israel for the next 24 hours.