On 2 March 2026 SWISS updated its ‘Current Information’ page to confirm that all Lufthansa-Group airlines will keep flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Amman, Erbil, Dammam and Tehran suspended until at least 8 March, while services to Dubai are halted until 4 March. The carriers have also closed the overflight corridors of Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Iran.(swiss.com)
The extension follows U.S.-Israeli air-strikes on Iran and retaliatory missile launches that led several Gulf states to restrict airspace. Although the ban is technically short-term, SWISS is offering free rebooking or full refunds for tickets issued before 1 March with travel dates up to 15 March, signalling that more changes are possible.
![SWISS & Lufthansa Group Extend Flight Bans to Tel Aviv, Dubai and Other Middle-East Destinations]()
For travellers scrambling to reroute through alternative gateways—often at short notice—securing the right transit or entry documents can become a hidden bottleneck. VisaHQ’s Switzerland portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) quickly lists the visa requirements for stopovers such as Athens, Istanbul or Cairo and can arrange expedited processing, helping companies keep time-sensitive trips on track despite the flight suspensions.
The operational impact is significant for Swiss corporates with projects in the Gulf, Israel and Saudi Arabia: Zurich–Dubai alone carried more than 220,000 passengers in 2025. Forwarders report reroutings via Athens, Istanbul and Cairo adding three to five hours to typical door-to-door times. Insurance underwriters are also reclassifying the region as “elevated risk”, which could push up travel-policy premiums once renewals come due.
Travel-management companies recommend that assignees maintain flexible tickets and avoid critical project deadlines in early March. Employers should catalogue employees with bookings to the region and ensure 24/7 tracking. If the security picture stabilises, SWISS says it can reinstate the Dubai route within 48 hours, but Tel Aviv will require airport-security clearance first.(euronews.com)
The extension follows U.S.-Israeli air-strikes on Iran and retaliatory missile launches that led several Gulf states to restrict airspace. Although the ban is technically short-term, SWISS is offering free rebooking or full refunds for tickets issued before 1 March with travel dates up to 15 March, signalling that more changes are possible.
For travellers scrambling to reroute through alternative gateways—often at short notice—securing the right transit or entry documents can become a hidden bottleneck. VisaHQ’s Switzerland portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) quickly lists the visa requirements for stopovers such as Athens, Istanbul or Cairo and can arrange expedited processing, helping companies keep time-sensitive trips on track despite the flight suspensions.
The operational impact is significant for Swiss corporates with projects in the Gulf, Israel and Saudi Arabia: Zurich–Dubai alone carried more than 220,000 passengers in 2025. Forwarders report reroutings via Athens, Istanbul and Cairo adding three to five hours to typical door-to-door times. Insurance underwriters are also reclassifying the region as “elevated risk”, which could push up travel-policy premiums once renewals come due.
Travel-management companies recommend that assignees maintain flexible tickets and avoid critical project deadlines in early March. Employers should catalogue employees with bookings to the region and ensure 24/7 tracking. If the security picture stabilises, SWISS says it can reinstate the Dubai route within 48 hours, but Tel Aviv will require airport-security clearance first.(euronews.com)
