Ethiopian Airlines flight turns back over Indonesian pilot

Israeli authorities turned back an Ethiopian Airlines flight bound for Tel Aviv after identifying an Indonesian pilot aboard, then allowed it to continue after the pilot was replaced, according to Israeli media reports. Ethiopian Airlines said the incident was a mistake and that it had not known the pilot was barred from operating Israel-bound flights. The flight returned to Addis Ababa, where the Indonesian pilot was replaced. The aircraft then resumed its journey and landed in Tel Aviv, the reports said. Accounts described it as a cargo flight, though the airline’s statement and the reports did not detail the specific operational rule applied to the aircraft. The episode followed tightened checks on foreign airline crews operating flights to Israel. Israeli media have reported that crew members from certain countries without diplomatic relations with Israel are barred from Israel-bound flights. Indonesia does not maintain diplomatic relations with Israel. The reports differ on the breadth of the restrictions, with one describing a published list of 31 countries and another citing a United Airlines memo that said at least 10 African countries were affected.