Regev meets with Israeli airline heads as cancellations strand citizens abroad
Carriers continue to nix flights after Houthi attack on Ben Gurion Airport, with most foreign airlines still staying away
Transportation Minister Miri Regev on Thursday held an emergency meeting with the heads of Israeli carriers after most foreign airlines temporarily suspended service to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, leaving thousands of Israelis stranded abroad, due to a Houthi missile that landed in the area of the facility earlier in the week.
Regev, together with Economy Minister Nir Barkat and Israel Airports Authority officials, met with the heads of Israeli flagship carrier El Al and smaller local airlines Israir, Arkia, and Air Haifa to discuss solutions to help bring Israelis back from overseas.
“In a time of national emergency, I expect Israeli airlines to show responsibility and refrain from exploiting the situation, and charging Israeli consumers unfair price increases, so that we don’t have to activate the regulatory tools at our disposal,” Barkat said. “Israeli aviation companies must show solidarity and act out of a mission and not burden the public.”
Among the measures under discussion with local carriers are reducing ticket price restrictions for major destinations and preparing for the activation of emergency plans in case of another wave of cancellations.
Most foreign airlines servicing Israel this week canceled their flights shortly after a ballistic missile fired by Yemen’s Houthis struck inside the grounds of Ben Gurion International Airport on Sunday.
According to a Channel 12 count Thursday evening, fewer than 25 airlines are still operating in Israel, compared to around 50 before the attack.
US carrier United said it is halting flights until May 18, and Delta won’t return to Israel until May 20. Spanish airline Air Europa on Friday extended the cancellation of its Tel Aviv-Madrid route until Sunday, while Iberia Express canceled flights to Tel Aviv until May 31.
Greece’s Aegean said it would cancel its flights to Tel Aviv until May 13 and the early morning flight on May 14; Air France also suspended flights until May 13; Latvia’s airBaltic said it had canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv until May 11, Polish carrier Lot until May 14, the Lufthansa group until May 18, budget airline Ryanair until May 21, and Wizz until May 14.
British Airways canceled its flights until at least June 14.
Only a few foreign airlines continued to fly in and out of Ben Gurion Airport this week, including flydubai, Emirates, and JetBlue Airways. Ethiopian Airlines canceled some of its flights to Israel, but resumed services to Tel Aviv by Thursday morning.
Many of the airlines had only recently resumed service to Israel, after flights were canceled for much of the war, which started with Hamas’s onslaught on southern communities on October 7, 2023. United had resumed flights from New York in March, while Delta returned on April 1 and British Airways restarted its flights on April 5.
Daily passenger traffic in and out of Ben Gurion Airport has dropped to an average of around 40,000 people a day in recent days, from around 70,000 at the end of April.
In response to the cancellations, Israeli airlines, including smaller carriers Arkia and Israir, have added flights from nearby destinations such as Athens and Larnaca, and capped one-way fares to a few destinations to help bring home Israelis stuck abroad. However, tickets have been selling out fast.
On Sunday, El Al started to sell one-way tickets from Larnaca, Cyprus, to Tel Aviv for $99 and from Athens to Tel Aviv for $149.
Israel’s flagship carrier also introduced a maximum price policy for one-way tickets from several destinations, including Rome, Barcelona, Paris, London Luton Airport, and New York, to Tel Aviv. El Al said it has sold 13,000 one-way tickets at the capped prices in recent days.
The Times of Israel Community.