Travel industry experts are watching the Middle East with bated breath as events threaten to spiral out of control following the U.S. bombing of Iran over the weekend.
Concerns had already been growing this month as ongoing tensions between Israel and Iran once again exploded into action with both sides firing missiles at one another, causing both military and civilian casualties.
But with Israel threatening to bomb Iranian facilities developing nuclear weapons with possible help from the U.S., there were worries before the weekend that this could lead to a major escalation in the Middle East should Iran decide to target U.S. military bases in any of the 12 countries in the region where it has a presence.
Now, despite U.S. President Donald Trump giving the impression that there was a two-week period for negotiations to take place, US B-2 stealth bombers launched an attack on Saturday night on Iranian nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan.
While Iran continues to weigh up its options for retaliatory action there are concerns that any escalation could cause problems far worse than the travel industry is currently coping with, with destinations far beyond the region likely to feel the impact too.
Speaking before the U.S. weekend strike, AGB Associates managing partner and former head of ABTA’s legal services Alan Bowen said: “The travel industry will be taking it very seriously but all bets are off if the U.S. decides to get involved as it is likely to drag other people in and we get into a very complicated situation.
“It’s going to have a huge impact if things develop.”
Aircraft Evacuation
OAG partner John Grant said the biggest impact so far from the latest round of fighting in the travel industry has been felt by Israel’s airlines El Al and Arkia as well as low cost carrier Israir, which evacuated their aircraft from the country’s airports on June 12.
Israeli airspace has also been closed during the latest round of fighting while neighboring Jordan has enforced an occasional shut down, although opinions vary on the impact this has had on the international aviation market which had rerouted many of its flights via the region thanks to the ongoing closure of Russian airspace.
Grant says the new airspace closures have led to detours being taken by aircraft over Saudi Arabia, adding up to 40 minutes on the flight time which has been adapted into schedules.
He added: “The latest fighting is obviously a factor of concern and people are conscious of it but from an operational point of view it is clearly safe otherwise airlines would not be using it.
“At the moment the aviation industry is living through turbulent times and dealing with geopolitical issues on an almost daily basis now.”
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