As many foreign airlines have yet to fully resume service to Israel, Etihad Airways is moving in the opposite direction, expanding its presence in the country.
Beginning June 15, the Abu Dhabi-based carrier will operate up to six daily flights on the Tel Aviv-Abu Dhabi route. That will make Israel the destination with the highest number of weekly flights in Etihad’s network, with 42 flights a week, more than major destinations such as Bangkok, Riyadh and Mumbai.
Etihad said it will add a sixth daily flight between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi, returning the route to its original operating plan. The new flight will be operated on an Airbus A321 with 188 seats.
The added flight will depart Tel Aviv at 3 p.m. The return flight will leave Abu Dhabi at 8:45 a.m. and land in Israel at 11 a.m.
The expansion comes amid strong demand on the route. According to company data, more than 100,000 passengers flew between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi during the first three months of the year, with an average load factor of about 90%, a roughly 30% increase compared with the same period last year.
Etihad said about 30% of passengers chose Abu Dhabi as their vacation destination, while about 70% used it as a stopover for onward flights to Asia.
Among the destinations that recorded the sharpest increases in demand were Tokyo, with a 250% jump; South Korea, up 80%; the Philippines, up 70%; and Thailand, up about 30%.
The airline is also emphasizing connecting fares through Abu Dhabi. According to Etihad, a round-trip ticket to Bangkok in early July starts at $974 without checked baggage, or $1,014 including a checked bag.
The company says that is lower than the average market price for flights with a stopover, which it puts at about $1,200.
Etihad’s expansion comes against a complex backdrop in international aviation.
Earlier this month, Lufthansa Group announced that it would gradually resume flights to Israel starting in June, while low-cost carrier Wizz Air said it would return as early as May 28. Both announcements followed an update by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, which softened its recommendations regarding flights to Israel after the U.S.-Iran ceasefire held.
Still, not all airlines are rushing back. American Airlines has said it will not return before January 2027. Delta and United are not expected to resume service during the summer, British Airways has extended cancellations until August and Spain’s Iberia has extended cancellations until the end of July.