The Federal Aviation Administration banned U.S. carriers from flying to Tel Aviv until around midday Eastern Standard Time on Wednesday after a rocket attack early Tuesday near the city's Ben Gurion International Airport.

The European Aviation Safety Agency, based in Cologne, Germany, also issued a notice to airlines similar to the FAA's, covering European carriers flying to Tel Aviv. It stopped short of an outright ban and said it "strongly recommends" halting flights for an unspecified period.

Israeli officials criticized the U.S. action and a spokeswoman for Israel's flag carrier, El Al Israel Airlines Ltd., said it would continue flying as scheduled. A number of European carriers also continued flights to the country's principal international gateway.

Earlier Tuesday, Delta Air Lines Inc., American Airlines Group Inc. and United Continental Holdings Inc. said they were canceling flights to Israel until further notice after reports that a rocket landed near Ben Gurion Airport.

A Delta-operated Boeing 747 from New York was flying over the Mediterranean Sea headed for Tel Aviv on Tuesday when it turned around and flew to Paris instead. Delta Air Lines Flight 468 had 273 passengers and 17 crew on board.