Air France bars Pakistani pilots and cabin crew from Israel flights as airlines tighten crew rules
Air France has stopped Pakistani pilots and cabin crew from working Israel-bound flights, and United Airlines and Smartwings have also changed crew management.
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Rules on crew deployment on flights to and from Israel are now being enforced more strictly. Air France has reportedly barred Pakistani pilots and cabin crew members from working flights on the Israel route.
Under the rules, citizens of countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel cannot work on flights on this route. Along with Air France, United Airlines of the United States and Smartwings of the Czech Republic have also changed their crew management in line with the rules.
The stricter enforcement is being attributed to an alleged incident on a flydubai flight. On 30 September 2026, on a flydubai aircraft flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Omani co-pilot Hammam Al-Hammami allegedly tried to take control of the aircraft and attacked Indian pilot Captain Smit Machhar. After this, the crew nationality rules for Israel-bound flights began to be taken more seriously.
According to a report of 13 October, Air France and United Airlines have informed their pilots and cabin crew of the rules. Air France has made clear that it is complying with Israel's requirements. United Airlines has also added the relevant rules to its crew management system.
One example of the strictness is an Ethiopian Airlines flight. When Israeli officials learnt that the aircraft had an Indonesian pilot, the aircraft was directed to return. At that time the aircraft was in Ethiopian airspace. After it returned to Addis Ababa, the pilot was replaced and the aircraft headed for Israel again. Ethiopian Airlines called it a mistake and said the company was not aware that the pilot was not permitted to fly Israel-bound flights.
According to reports, the restrictions apply to citizens of 31 Muslim-majority countries. These are said to include Pakistan, Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Tunisia, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon and Nigeria. The restriction is not limited to pilots and also applies to cabin crew. Employees with dual citizenship do not automatically get an exemption either.
Israeli reports say Israel's Ministry of Transport and Road Safety issued instructions on 1 October informing foreign airlines of the rules. It is claimed that the rules existed even before the alleged flydubai incident, but were not enforced so strictly earlier.
