- Israel’s Ministry of Transport issued a crew-nationality restriction on October 7, 2026, covering aircraft entering or crossing Israeli airspace.
- The rule also covers transit flights, scheduled services, and charters, even when aircraft do not land at Ben Gurion Airport.
- Airlines must check crew citizenship, including dual citizenship; reported country lists differ, naming 29, 31, or 32 countries.
Israel has extended a crew-nationality restriction beyond flights landing at Ben Gurion Airport: pilots and flight attendants with citizenship from countries lacking diplomatic relations with Israel cannot operate aircraft entering or crossing its airspace. The restriction also applies when a crew member holds dual citizenship.
The Ministry of Transport issued the directive on October 7, 2026. Israeli authorities had reportedly notified foreign airlines on October 1, 2026, before issuing the order.
The measure followed an aviation-security incident aboard a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30, 2026. An Omani co-pilot allegedly attacked the captain and tried to take control of the aircraft.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered a review of foreign civil aviation security after the incident. The directive’s timing is documented, but the review order does not establish that the directive followed the review.
The rule reaches scheduled services, charters and transit flights
The restriction covers scheduled passenger flights and charter services, as well as flights arriving in and departing from Israel. It also applies to aircraft crossing Israeli-controlled airspace without landing.
That airspace is Israel’s Flight Information Region, which includes the country and its territorial waters. It covers approximately 30,325 square kilometers.
Airlines therefore have to consider crew eligibility when assigning personnel to flights that pass through the area, not only when scheduling service to Israeli airports. The restriction concerns pilots and cabin crew whose citizenship, including dual citizenship, is from a country without diplomatic relations with Israel.
The headline count exceeds the 31-country list in circulation
The fixed headline refers to 32 countries, while a list circulated by Air France and other sources names 31. Some airline documents reportedly showed 29 countries; other accounts also referred to 31.
The 31-country list names Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Belize, Brunei, Comoros, Cuba, Djibouti, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nicaragua, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Venezuela and Yemen.
At least 10 African countries appear on that list: Algeria, Comoros, Djibouti, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Somalia, Sudan and Tunisia. The different totals mean the documents described in reports do not present a single consistent count.
A second passport does not exempt crew members
The restriction can apply even if a crew member also holds citizenship from a country that maintains diplomatic relations with Israel. An American pilot with Omani or Pakistani citizenship, for example, could be barred from operating a flight through Israeli airspace.
A French-Algerian flight attendant or an American-Sudanese crew member could also be excluded. Air France told its crews the restriction covered both nationality and dual nationality from the designated countries.
A United Airlines internal scheduling memo reportedly listed 29 countries for flights to and from Tel Aviv. That differs from the 31-country list circulated by Air France and other sources.
Aviation-law expert Hussein B. Correia said a state can impose nationality-based immigration restrictions on foreign crews. Crew members may pass through immigration and customs during international operations, he said.
Airlines must check crew assignments before entering the area
Carriers must review crew citizenship and assignments before operating in the affected airspace. Noncompliance could result in suspension or revocation of authorization to enter it.
The directive was attributed to Israel’s Ministry of Transport and Road Safety. The reported aviation-security review began with Netanyahu’s order after the September 30 incident; the crew restriction was issued on October 7.
