Only 340 aircraft used Jordan's airspace on Wednesday — CARC

AMMAN — The Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission (CARC) on Thursday said that 340 aircraft transited, landed in and departed from Jordan on Wednesday, marking a drop of 22 per cent from the normal average. 

CARC attributed this decline to rising tensions in the region.

CARC Chief Commissioner Haitham Misto told Al Mamlaka TV on Wednesday that Jordan's airspace is safe, noting that there is a continuous assessment with precautionary measures in case of risk, where a decision is taken to ensure the safety of air traffic.

He noted that some airlines have recently decided to temporarily suspend flights to several countries in the region, including Jordan, in light of increased tensions in the Middle East.

The chief commissioner said that the majority of these airlines have resumed regular flights to Amman, with others expected to follow suit.

Misto explained that there are other airlines that connect world destinations to Amman, which means that Jordan is still connected with these countries whose companies have suspended their flights to the Kingdom.  

He noted that any decision taken by any company is based on its own assessment.

Meanwhile, Dubai-based Emirates on Thursday said it has cancelled flights to Jordan, Iraq and Iran for three days over "regional unrest", after an Iranian missile strike on Israel stoked fears of a wider war, AFP reported.

"Emirates is cancelling all flights to/from Jordan (Amman), Iraq (Basra and Baghdad), and Iran (Tehran) on October 4 and 5 due to regional unrest," said the airline, which also halted services to the destinations on Thursday, according to AFP.

The Middle East's biggest airline had previously announced cancellations between Dubai and Beirut until October 8, as several other carriers put services to the region on hold.

On Tuesday, German airline group Lufthansa said it was suspending flights to Beirut up to and including November 30, AFP added.