• news
• Corona

Spontaneous families and business travel: This is what the opening of the sky at Ben Gurion Airport looked like

The airport that became desolate 5 months ago is back in operation under the Corona restrictions. Among the passengers and returnees were families who took the opportunity for vacation and students. Passengers said they had difficulty getting information: "We did not know how it was conducted and where to do tests", but greeted: "Glad you can enter freely"

• Ben Gurion Airport
• Flights
• Bulgaria
• Corona virus

Keenan Cohen

After five months in which a flight seemed like a distant dream, this morning (Sunday) the first flights departed as part of the new outline. Of the three destinations, Croatia, Greece and Bulgaria, the first low-cost W64428 flight from WIZZ took off for Sofia. Among the 30 passengers, families who took advantage of the hatch to go on a spontaneous vacation within the current limits, and travel for work and study purposes.

One of the families said that as soon as they heard that Bulgaria was becoming a destination that could be visited, they hurried to buy tickets and perform the corona check. Another passenger returned to Israel after a week's stay as part of his work, and to his delight discovered last week that he would not be required in isolation when he arrived in Israel.

A medical student in Bulgaria, Daniel Bitton, has been frequently on the line between Israel and Sofia, and so far has "accumulated" five isolations in recent months. However, since he did not perform a corona test before the flight, he will be required to be isolated this time as well when landing in Bulgaria. "I flew on this line even when the corona was in full swing," Bitton said. "Now I'm flying. Pick me up a cab from the field straight for isolation." "In Bulgaria, there is easier supervision of isolation," he said.

Read more on the subject

• Regev after approval of the return plan: "Great news for citizens"
• Airlines: No skyline or assistance - we will not be able to refund money
• Contrary to the outline: the tender for the corona laboratory at Ben Gurion Airport - without the involvement of the Ministry of Health
• A degree in communication alone is no longer enough - a new two-course track will open doors for you

Another Israeli who works in Bulgaria has already been in solitary confinement four times. "I returned to Israel every weekend. The last time I was there was close to two months, and even without any connection to the opening of the sky, I planned to return today," he said. "I did the rapid corona test privately. To my delight the result came out negative."

He said the last time he flew he had difficulty getting into Bulgaria. "They did not want to let me in because I was Israeli," he said. "But now I can enter freely - and to my delight without isolation." He said of the flight that "there were three passengers and four crew members on board."

From the pilots we spoke to, it emerged that the main difficulty was to obtain reliable information regarding the pre-flight procedure. They conducted the tests privately, despite the high payment of several hundred shekels required for them. Some came with forms in the Hebrew language, which are of course less relevant to border control personnel in Bulgaria.

"Once we heard that Bulgaria had opened, it took us two weeks to get ready for the tests," said a passenger who flew to Sofia with her two children. "There were a lot of inquiries about where to go to do the test, but in the end it worked out." She said, "The tests were really fast, we did them 'before', but getting information was a bit problematic. We did not know where to do it and how it was conducted."

More on Walla! NEWS

Where to fly and how to prepare before arriving at Ben Gurion Airport? Israel opens the sky

To the full article

These are also the things that come up from conversations with ground crews, who say that some passengers still do not know the details of the pre-flight procedure and get the impression that opening the sky means you can just get on and fly. However, this reality that we knew before the plague is irrelevant.

"There is an increase in the number of passengers, especially more families," described Anastasia, a land stewardess for Qas, a company that provides ground services to airlines. "Most people understand what needs to be prepared before the flight and with what documents to arrive, but there are those who do not really understand."

"We try to help as much as possible, including contacting the immigration authorities there to see what can be done. Most people are patient and understand that the situation is very different, but as always there are those who are not so much."