Following an assessment of the situation conducted by Minister of Transport and Road Safety Brig. Gen. (res.) Miri Regev, the emergency plan was formulated in case all foreign airlines stop their flights to Israel in view of the intensification of the fighting. The plan was formulated by aviation professionals who presented it to the minister on Monday.
IDF Chief of Staff assessing the situation in the Southern Command // IDF Spokesperson
According to the plan, aviation "hubs" (departure centers) will be operated at four major airports, from which flights to Israel will be carried out by Israeli airlines. Airports are JFK in New York, Frankfurt Airport in Germany, Athens Port in Greece and UAE Airport in Dubai.
Regev said, "In light of the war, and following the fact that some of the foreign airlines stopped flights to Israel, I instructed the professionals to prepare to bring Israelis home. In recent days, thanks to efforts, more than 20,<> Israelis have returned to Israel, and since Saturday night, more than <> flights have been added to the original schedule by Israeli airlines. I have also instructed that Ramon Airport be prepared to receive international flights."
Cancelled flight schedule, Photo: Getty Images
The ministry notes that as of now, there are still many flights to Israel from many destinations around the world, and passengers whose flight was canceled can check the flight schedule, purchase tickets to these destinations and from these destinations to Israel.
Over the past 24 hours, at the request of the Minister of Transport, Israeli airlines have increased their flight schedules, mainly to Athens and Larnaca, in order to assist passengers whose flights to Israel have been canceled.
The minister sought to formulate the plan due to the forecast that as the fighting intensified, flights by additional foreign airlines would be canceled. The Ministry of Transport calls on passengers planning to leave Israel in the coming days to consider their departure, due to the difficulties that may arise to return to Israel.
A plane lands at Ben Gurion Airport (archive), photo: Moshe Shai
In addition, the Ministry recommends that all passengers who can advance their trip to Israel do so. When the emergency plan is put into operation, the Ministry of Transport will update the public on flight dates from the four airports. It should be noted that the departure centers were chosen for their connectivity to dozens of airports around the world.
The Minister of Transport noted that she would act to maintain air communication to and from the State of Israel, while ensuring the safety and security of passengers.
Wrong? We'll fix it! If you find a mistake in the article, please share with us