Air France has opened an investigation into how a jet flying from Paris to Dubai went over Iraq as Iranian missiles fired at Israel crossed the same airspace, the airline said Wednesday.
Iran launched dozens of missiles towards Israel on October 1 in what it said was a response to the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and others in Lebanon. The missiles had to pass through Iraq’s airspace to reach Israel.
Air France Flight AF662 was flying over Iraq when the Iranian attack began at around 4:45 p.m. UTC (11.45 a.m. ET) and left Iraqi airspace “shortly before” 5 p.m. UTC (12 p.m. ET), the airline told us in a statement.
Iraqi airspace was not officially closed by local authorities until 5:56 p.m. UTC (12:56 p.m. ET), it added.
“Thanks to the information we gathered we were able to identify a forthcoming attack on Israel by Iran, involving the launch of ballistic missiles,” Air France said.
“As a result, and without waiting for instructions from the Iraqi authorities, Air France decided to suspend the overflight of the country’s airspace by its aircraft from 5 p.m. UTC [12 p.m. ET],” it added.
The airline said its jets “were already avoiding Israeli, Lebanese and Iranian airspace,” and that Flight AF662 was flying through “a special corridor used by all airlines.”
Some hours before the strike, the White House said it had “indications that Iran is preparing to imminently launch a ballistic missile attack against Israel.”
Air France stressed that a number of its other flights had been diverted to avoid the region on the night of the attack.
“Air France constantly monitors geopolitical developments in the areas it serves and flies over, to ensure the highest levels of flight safety and security,” it said, adding “the safety of its customers and crews is its top priority.”
French television channel LCI, which first reported the incident, said Air France pilots saw the missiles in the night sky from the cockpit, and that Iraqi air traffic control had wished the pilots “good luck.”
Asked by them, an Air France spokesperson would not confirm that the pilots saw missiles fly past.
The incident comes as the conflict in the Middle East further spirals. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned the Lebanese people they face falling “into the abyss of a long war” as his country escalates its attacks on Hezbollah, which is continuing to fire rockets into northern Israel.
The Israeli cabinet is also considering how to respond to Iran’s October 1 strike, after pledging Tehran “will pay” for launching its largest-ever attack on Israel.
Meanwhile, Israel’s offensive in Gaza rages on. Palestinians fleeing sites of Israel’s renewed military operation in the north of the strip are being shot at as they evacuate, according to residents there and footage shared with us documenting their journey.
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