Airport employees fully return to work, ending wildcat strike; flights gradually resuming, but bottleneck will take time to clear

20 August 2026, 4:13 pm

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Travelers wait in the departures hall of Ben Gurion Airport during a wildcat strike, August 20, 2026. (X screenshot, used in accordance with clause 27a of the copyright law)

Workers at Ben Gurion Airport have fully resumed their work after talks held by the workers’ union and the Israel Airports Authority chiefs, the IAA says in a statement.

The statement says that, additionally, “significant efforts” will be made to expand the workforce in order to meet the operational challenges faced by the employees.

Flight activity at the airport is renewing gradually, though the IAA acknowledges that it will take time to clear the bottleneck created by hours of delays and chaos, which has included some flights getting canceled altogether.

The IAA asks travelers to maintain contact with the airlines to get further updates about their flights.

“We are sorry and apologize for the harm to travelers,” it adds.