Israel Airports Authority says it’s boosting staffing for Jewish holidays, following wildcat strike

The Israel Airports Authority says it is gearing up to complete preparations to handle peak traffic during the upcoming Jewish holidays starting in September, as more than 3 million travelers are expected to pass through airports and land border crossings next month.

The announcement comes less than two weeks after a wildcat strike at Ben Gurion Airport threw travelers into chaos on the airport’s busiest day of the year. That sparked concerns that the airport wasn’t equipped to handle traffic during the Jewish holidays.

This year, Rosh Hashanah begins on the evening of September 11, commencing three weeks of Jewish holidays during which large numbers of tourists come to Israel.

During September, about 2.5 million passengers are expected to travel via Ben Gurion Airport, about 81,000 via Ramon Airport in the country’s south, and around 60,000 via Haifa Airport in the north. Another 500,000 travelers are expected to cross via land borders with Jordan and Egypt.

“To handle the expected volume of passengers, the Israel Airports Authority has increased staffing at Ben Gurion Airport and border crossings,” the IAA says in a statement. “Additionally, there will be increased managerial presence in the terminals during the Jewish holidays.”

Earlier this month, the two-hour wildcat strike at Ben Gurion sparked extensive delays and some flight cancellations amid a dispute between the IAA and the workers’ union about staff shortages. In August, about 2.65 million passengers passed through Ben Gurion, the IAA says.

Peak travel days during the upcoming Jewish holidays are expected to be September 10, 17, 22, and 25, with 100,000 passengers traveling through Ben Gurion on each of these days across some 600 daily flights, according to the IAA. Top destinations for outgoing travelers during the Jewish holidays are expected to be Greece, Cyprus, the US, Italy, and the UAE.