El Al readies rescue flights as Israel set to gradually reopen airspace next week

Flag carrier plans flights from 22 destinations in the US, Europe and Asia, while Arkia and Israir are starting to fly homeward-bound Israelis to the Egyptian border

Israel’s flag carrier, El Al, is getting ready to operate flights from 22 destinations across Europe, the US, and Asia to repatriate tens of thousands of Israelis stranded abroad, as the country’s airspace is set to gradually reopen from next week.

Transportation Minister Miri Regev said on Monday that aviation authorities were preparing to reopen Israel’s airspace in a phased manner as early as Sunday, subject to security developments.

“I have instructed Civil Aviation Authority head Shmuel Zakay to meet with Israeli airlines so that they are prepared for the opening of the skies in a phased manner starting next week — all of this, of course, in accordance with security developments,” said Regev.

Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, the country’s main international gateway, has been shut for departures and arrivals since Saturday, when Israel and the US launched a major joint military strike on Iran and the Islamic Republic responded with barrages of missile fire. The airspace closure left more than 150,000 Israelis stranded abroad.

Once the country’s airspace gradually reopens, El Al plans to pick up Israelis from New York, Miami, and Los Angeles in the US; and Bangkok and Phuket in Southeast Asia. Across Europe, flights will be operated from Larnaca, Athens, Rome, Milan, Paris, Budapest, Tbilisi, Sofia, Warsaw, Bucharest, Madrid, London, Barcelona, ​​Geneva, Amsterdam, Munich, and Zurich.

Repatriation flights for ticket holders of El Al and Sun Dor whose flights were canceled will be at no additional cost. Flights will be opened for sale to the general public only after all El Al and Sun Dor customers have been repatriated, El Al said.

Meanwhile, a smaller Israeli carrier, Arkia, on Sunday launched flights using Electra Airways’ Airbus A320 aircraft to and from Athens, Greece, to Egypt’s Taba Airport to help stranded Israelis return home.

For passengers landing in Taba and crossing the nearby land border with Egypt into Israel, Egged buses wait at the terminal to transport them to central bus stations in Eilat and Beersheba in the south, to the Ben Gurion Airport parking lot, and to Tel Aviv in the center.

In response to ample demand, Arkia will also operate flights to Taba in the coming days from Rome, Italy; Larnaca, Cyprus; Bucharest, Romania; and Sofia, Bulgaria.

“Thousands of Israelis have already returned to the country via land crossings,” Regev said.

American-Israeli Miriam Shaviv, a therapist from the central city of Modiin, is among the tens of thousands of El Al customers stranded abroad seeking desperately to find a route back home after her Sunday flight was canceled. Married with three children, Shaviv flew out with a friend, Brachie Sprung, on Thursday to spend a long weekend in Budapest.

“It became impossible to enjoy being here, and I was losing my mind not knowing when I could fly back with El Al, especially after what happened in Beit Shemesh. And the thought of, God forbid, something happening and I’m not there with my family, became intolerable,” Shaviv, 47, told The Times of Israel. “I was looking for a way back, and then the Arkia flights became available through Rome to Taba, and I bought it for about $500.”

“My friend is not coming with me, as she is not comfortable with the flight plan since she feels it’s not safe, so she will be waiting to return with El Al,” said Shaviv.

To catch the Arkia flight, Shaviv had to buy an additional flight ticket from Budapest to Rome leaving on Monday night with a layover, to be able to fly out the next day in the early morning to Taba and cross the border into Israel.

“At the border, I’m warned that it will be quite difficult, and many, many hours [to] wait, but at least there will be buses waiting on the other side,” said Shaviv.

From Tuesday, Israeli carrier Israir will start operating flights from six destinations in Europe to Taba to help stranded travelers return home. Israir will operate flights from Prague, Budapest, Sofia, Rovaniemi, Bergamo, and Grenoble, at no additional cost for the carrier’s customers whose flights were cancelled.

The flights will be chartered by planes of Croatia’s Trade Air and Romania’s HelloJets, upon approval from relevant authorities. Flights will be opened to the general public for sale only after the completion of the placement of Israir passengers on flights home to Israel, the airline said.