extended

Travel warning as airspace closure extended across Gulf

AIRLINES have been warned not to fly over the Gulf until next month due to rising tensions in the Middle East.

What this means for Brits is your long-haul flight could take a different (and longer) route, or even become more expensive.

Airlines have been warned not to fly over the Persian Gulf Credit: Alamy
Long-haul flights could be affected as these countries are frequently used for stopovers Credit: Alamy

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) tightened its warning on flights over the Gulf earlier this week.

It has warned airlines to avoid airspace over ‌the waters of the Persian Gulf within Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE until September 30.

However, this area is considered one of the world’s busiest flight corridors.

For those on long-haul journeys from the UK, these countries are quite often used as stopovers.

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In its advice, the EASA said: “While risks over the waters of ​the Persian Gulf remain high, operations necessary for arrivals ​at or departures from aerodromes within the affected Flight Information Regions may be conducted with sufficient mitigation.”

However as the EASA warning is advice and not a complete ban, airlines can factor the risk into their route planning.

There won’t be a suspension of flights but some are likely to be rerouted with journeys set to become longer.

But lots of airlines have already been doing this since the war began earlier this year by avoiding certain airspaces.

Some have diverted further south over the Arabian Sea or rerouting to the eastern Mediterranean and Central Asia.

Schedules could change too as flights could become longer and aircraft types could be altered to accommodate higher fuel loads.

Flights could be rerouted or even become more expensive Credit: Alamy

Ticket prices could be affected too – and not in a good way.

Earlier this year, International Airlines Group (IAG), which owns British Airways, Iberia and Aer Lingus warned of potential price increases.

To offset the increase in fuel costs caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, it said that there could be an extra cost through ticket prices.

Business class and other premium long-haul passengers most likely to be affected.

Chief executive Luis Gallego said airlines need to increase fares to help offset fuel costs, which make up about a quarter of their spending.

The conflict in Iran has added as much as $100 (£77) per person to the price of long-haul flights from Europe, April figures have revealed.

The Transport & Environment (T&E) said in a statement that disruption to jet fuel supplies is likely to trigger higher ticket prices for passengers.

T&E added that the rise in jet fuel prices has increased the average fuel cost by £77 for each passenger on long-haul flights leaving Europe.

For a family of four heading on a long-haul holiday that’s an increase of £308.



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‘Haunted’ tunnel at the bottom of the world could be extended in £1.27billion project

Some locals claim the tunnel is haunted by the ghost of a murdered teenager.

Hidden at the bottom of the world is a tunnel which is shadowed in years of history. Thousands of cars travel through it daily, and as they do, they sound their horns.

The tunnel is a cacophony of beeping and tooting at all hours of the day and night – all thanks to a murder which has haunted the city since 1931. The Mount Victoria Tunnel is part of a well-used stretch of highway in Wellington, New Zealand.

According to legend, the reason drivers lean on their horns as they travel through the tunnel is in tribute to murdered teenager Phillis Symons.

Phillis was buried alive in dirt fill during the tunnel’s construction.

She was only 17 and was pregnant when her boyfriend George Coats, a worker on the construction of the tunnel, knocked her unconscious with a pipe.

George then dumped Phillis in the dirt fill. Her body was found hunched over, meaning she had tried to escape the soil.

George was sentenced to death for the murder, and was hanged in December 1931.

The tunnel was opened to the public in the same year.

Now, almost a hundred years later, the 632 metre long tunnel echoes constantly with the sound of car horns which residents believe either wards off spirits, or pays tribute to the memory of Phillis.

Some locals say the tunnel is haunted – others say the constant beeping is the only thing that haunts the road.

The tunnel is the subject of a £1.27billion (between NZD$2.9b and NZD$3.8b) infrastructure project which would see a second tunnel built alongside the first to try and alleviate the severe bottlenecks which occur in the tunnel.

The current one is only two lanes, and frequently closes due to crashes, causing traffic jams that can last hours.

According to RNZ, the project has been granted fast track approval – but as of last week there was still no expected start date.

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