Airlines trapped from Iranian airspace travel to the Afghanistan route
After airspace across the massive Middle Eastern strip has been transformed into no-fly zones, Afghan skies are becoming increasingly crowded as airlines seek alternative flight routes to connect Europe, the US and Asia.
Flightradar24 data shows that flights through Afghanistan, managed by the Taliban, have risen by 500% since Israel launched its attack on Iran on June 13th. This is compared to the average 50 flights that cross the country on average on average last month, the flight tracking site says.
The risk of conflict and escalation, considering the US joining Israel in Iranian artillery bombardment, has made flying through Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran difficult. Some airlines, including American Airlines Inc. and Air France-KLM, are cutting service to the region, with local conflicts rarely fading in the second week.
read more: Airline chaos reaches Dubai, Qatar as we contemplate the Iranian attack
Two years after the Taliban ruled the country and the US retracted its troops, restrictions on flying through Afghanistan were eased in 2023, but many airlines still largely avoid airspace. Since late 2023, more airlines have begun using Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia flights, flying daily through the Gulf state (just south of closed airspace, 1,400 this week).
The turbulent surge is standing to bring about a financial windfall to the cash-bound Taliban, which is collected through third-party intermediaries, charging a fee of $700 for each flight. It translates to an influx of over $1 million a week as a result of an increase in traversers.