Israeli airlines El Al and Arkia join Israir in announcing they are moving their planes out of the country, hours after Israel launched widespread strikes against Iran and braced for retaliation.
The planes were flown without passengers, says a spokesperson for Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, which on Friday closed until further notice.
Israir says it is evacuating and relocating its aircraft from the airport, adding this was part of a contingency plan developed over the past few days.
El Al says it is moving aircraft out of Israel “to our destinations” and Arkia declines to say where they were moving.
Flight tracking data show a number of planes leaving Tel Aviv.
A number of Israir flights went to Cyprus and several El Al aircraft were flown to airports in Europe, Flightradar24 data shows.
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From the Liveblog of
Friday, June 13, 2025
