Four El Al flights delayed amid work dispute

Flights to Newark, Budapest, Kiev pushed off until morning; plane to London leaves two hours late

By ToI Staff 4 January 2015, 11:29 pm

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A departure flight board displays various canceled and delayed flights in Ben-Gurion International Airport, July 23, 2014. (AP/Dan Balilty)

Four El Al flights to various destinations in Europe and Newark were delayed at Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday night due to an unspecified work dispute.

Three of the four flights — to Newark, Budapest, and Kiev — were pushed off until Monday morning, while a flight to London, which was scheduled to depart on Sunday at 5:15 p.m., left after a two-hour delay.

The airline told Channel 2 that lately it has been forced to grapple with a shortage of pilots, as well as having to negotiate with pilots who were unwilling to fly certain routes.

El Al turned to the labor court for an injunction to return the employees to work immediately, the report said.

In May, El Al was forced to cancel four flights at the last minute when the pilots failed to arrive.