Air France Complies With New Israeli Rule Restricting Flight Crews by Nationality

Air France has confirmed it is complying with new Israeli regulations that restrict flight personnel from entering and transiting Israel based on nationality. The controversial policy, according to experts, could expose the airline to discrimination lawsuits.

According to Israeli media and an investigative report by France's Mediapart, the new rule lists 31 Muslim-majority countries — including Algeria, Tunisia, Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Niger — whose citizens are no longer permitted to fly into Israeli airspace.

In a statement to Al Jazeera, Air France said: "Like all airlines, Air France is obliged to comply with entry regulations established by the authorities of the countries where it operates, for both customers and employees."

Dozens of airlines affected

According to Israel's N12, the country's Ministry of Transport and Road Safety notified foreign airlines on October 1 that pilots and cabin crew operating flights into Israeli airspace may not hold citizenship or dual citizenship of countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel.

The directive was issued one day after an Omani co-pilot allegedly attempted to hijack a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv and crash it into Israel's Ben Gurion Airport on September 30, according to UAE and Israeli authorities. The co-pilot is accused of assaulting the Indian pilot, who is recovering in hospital.

Air France told Al Jazeera: "The employees concerned have been informed of the new regulation imposed by the Israeli authorities for flights to Tel Aviv."

Israel's directive could affect dozens of airlines flying to, from or through the country. Al Jazeera contacted Israel's Transport Ministry for comment but had not received a response as of publication.

Al Jazeera also contacted 15 major international airlines operating flights to Israel, asking whether they had received the directive and changed crew assignments.

Smartwings, the Czech Republic's largest airline, confirmed it had received the new Israeli directive. It said operations have not yet been affected but that it will comply with the restrictions.

Smartwings spokesperson Vladimira Dufkova told Al Jazeera: "We received the directive from the Israeli authorities in September 2026. We have carefully reviewed it and continue to monitor and comply with all applicable requirements issued by the relevant bodies. The directive currently does not affect operations, crew management processes or staffing on flights to and from Israel."

United Airlines responded only that it "had nothing to share." The U.S. carrier did not confirm whether it had received the Israeli directive or acted on it.

According to an internal memo sent to Air France pilots and cabin crew that Mediapart viewed, the airline warned that "failure to comply with this directive will expose Air France and its employees to potential sanctions." Al Jazeera could not independently verify the memo.

Risk of discrimination lawsuits

According to Paris-based anti-discrimination lawyer Clara Gandin, the reported restrictions could put Air France at odds with French labor law, raising the question of whether an airline can comply with a foreign government's security demands while disregarding its obligations to its workers.

Gandin told Al Jazeera: "This measure is based on a collective assumption, equivalent to a discriminatory stereotype: that every citizen of these 31 countries, most of them Arab or Muslim-majority, is considered a potential security threat."

According to the lawyer, Air France's application of the directive constitutes clear "discriminatory harassment."

She cited Article L1132-1 of the French Labor Code, which prohibits any discriminatory measure based on a person's actual or presumed nationality, particularly regarding assignment, pay and discipline.

"Excluding employees from certain flights because they hold Algerian, Tunisian, Iranian or other nationalities on Israel's list is therefore direct discrimination, even if no pay is lost," she said.

She added that since the listed countries are largely Arab or Muslim-majority, the measure could also constitute "indirect discrimination based on origin, and potentially on presumed religion."

The lawyer explained that French law provides an exception for differences in treatment if it is an "occupational requirement," pursues a proportionate "legitimate aim" and is tied to the nature of the job. However, she argued that nationality is clearly not a requirement to fly a plane, and that Air France continuing to let the same pilots and cabin crew operate all other routes shows it does not consider them a safety risk.

According to Gandin, Air France has no valid legal justification for applying Israel's policy. The airline's aim is commercial — maintaining access to the Israeli market — but economic factors cannot justify discrimination under the law. The security objective belongs to Israel, not to the company, and French law examines the employer's own purpose, not that of its clients.

She also cited a 2017 ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union, applied by France's highest court the same year, holding that a third party's wishes cannot turn a protected characteristic into an occupational requirement. According to her, a proportionate response to security concerns must be based on individual assessment — which French aviation security screening already provides — and cannot rest on nationality alone.

Airspace sovereignty and national law

The question of whether the restrictions constitute discrimination under French law is, however, separate from a state's right to regulate access to its airspace and territory.

Analysts cite international civil aviation law, which recognizes national sovereignty over territorial airspace under Article 1 of the 1944 Chicago Convention, and the recognition of crew licenses issued by other member states under Article 33, subject to certain conditions.

Aviation law professor Vincent Correia of McGill University in Canada also cited Article 13 of the Convention, which allows a state to enforce its laws and regulations on the entry of passengers and crew into its territory.

Correia told Al Jazeera: "A state can therefore impose entry restrictions on crew from another country based on nationality, since crew members must pass through immigration and customs checks on international flights."

According to him, pilots and other crew from countries with which Israel has no diplomatic relations were already barred from flying there, so the new measure applies only to dual nationals — which explains why airlines such as Air France may have complied.

Nevertheless, lawyer Gandin argued that a state's right to impose entry restrictions does not necessarily exempt an airline's obligations under other applicable law, including anti-discrimination and national labor law.

According to her, while Air France may invoke national sovereignty over airspace, that "does not change the fact that this measure is discriminatory." She also pointed out that the airline has other options: not operating the route under these conditions, or challenging the directive through the French state, the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC) or the EU. The DGAC had not responded to Al Jazeera's query as of publication.

According to Gandin, France's flagship airline could therefore expose itself to legal consequences. Affected employees can seek damages, and unions can file suit. Such a measure could also fall under criminal law, with penalties of up to three years in prison and a 45,000-euro ($50,300) fine.

She also said data protection law requires that information employees are asked to provide be directly relevant and necessary for the job. A list of employees holding one of the 31 listed nationalities could reveal ethnic origin and violate that rule.

According to Mediapart, Air France had considered asking crew members to self-declare if they were affected by the document. However, the Alter union representing flight crews persuaded management to drop the move, saying in a leaflet to members that it amounted to "discrimination based on nationality." Alter did not respond to Al Jazeera's request for comment.

While the broader impact of Israel's policy on other airlines remains unclear, expert Correia warned it could set a precedent for other countries to apply nationality-based screening of international crews, complicating aviation operations.

He said: "Amid a pilot shortage, this will add further constraints for airlines scheduling flights to and from Israel. If other countries adopt similar measures, management could quickly become extremely difficult."