Icelandair will be allowed to continue flights to and from select US airports despit the newly instated travel restrictions that will go into effect on Friday at midnight, RÚV reports. Iceland is one of 26 countries affected by US President Donald Trump’s recent presidential proclamation, which will suspend entry to the US to all foreign nationals who have been within Europe’s Schengen Area in the last 14 days. The ban is currently set to last for 30 days.
Icelandair issued a statement saying that all flights to the US on Thursday and Friday would proceed as scheduled. Once the ban goes into effect, however, only flights to and from four destinations will be allowed: New York (JFK and Newark), Chicago, Seattle, and Washington DC. The ban will still prevent foreign nationals who have been within Schengen from travelling to these airports.
As of Thursday afternoon, the company had yet to issue a full statement on schedule disruptions, but it has acknowledged that the travel ban will have a significant impact on its flight plan. Icelandair previously cancelled 80 flights and anticipates that it will further need to reduce its offerings in March and April. There are currently 490 flights to the US scheduled during that period.
All flights to Boston, Minneapolis, Denver, and Orlando scheduled between March 14 and 16 have been cancelled. However, flights from Orlando and Denver on March 14 will go ahead as scheduled.
All changes to the Icelandair flight plan will be posted on their website as they become available.
