Swiss halts Saudi Arabia overflights while Edelweiss continues to use the airspace

Swiss has suspended overflights of Saudi Arabia for now, after recent attacks on Riyadh's international airport. A spokesperson for the carrier said the country's airspace offers no significant operational advantage on its current network compared with existing routings over Azerbaijan, notably on services to India and the Far East. The spokesperson also cited the risk of short-notice airspace restrictions or closures, adding that the airline wanted to avoid added operational complexity and keep its flying stable and predictable.

Edelweiss, a sister carrier in Lufthansa Group, has gone the other way. Flight tracking data shows the Swiss leisure airline is still crossing Saudi airspace, and a spokesperson said using it matters operationally, particularly for flights to destinations such as the Maldives. The two carriers' route networks differ, which is among the reasons they act differently.

Lufthansa Group airlines may still fly over the country under certain safety conditions. The same applies to approvals from Switzerland's Federal Office of Civil Aviation, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and Germany's Federal Aviation Office, according to the report. Edelweiss said it complies strictly with the applicable safety requirements and reviews the situation continuously with specialists. It is not the only Lufthansa Group carrier still using Saudi airspace.