Flying abroad during the Jewish high holiday season? It may be worth marking four dates on the calendar when unusually heavy traffic is expected at Ben Gurion Airport. According to an Israel Airports Authority forecast, the peak days will be September 10, 17, 22 and 25, with about 100,000 passengers expected to pass through the airport on roughly 600 flights each day. The heaviest congestion is expected as early as September 10, ahead of Rosh Hashanah eve, when more than 100,000 passengers are expected to pass through Ben Gurion on international flights.
Overall, about 2.5 million passengers are expected to pass through Ben Gurion Airport during September and the high holiday period. The Airports Authority says staffing will be increased at the airport and border crossings ahead of the busy season, with a greater management presence in the terminals during the holidays as well.
Will the chaos return
(Photo: Jack Guez / AFP)
Preparations for the holidays come after an especially turbulent August at Ben Gurion Airport, when about 2.65 million passengers passed through. The worst disruption came on August 20, when, amid a dispute between Airports Authority management and the workers’ union, landings were halted for about an hour, flights were delayed and canceled, and many passengers were forced to depart without their luggage. At the time, the Airports Authority accused the workers’ union of staging a deliberate strike, while union chairman Pinhas Idan denied the claim and said the disruptions were caused by an ongoing manpower shortage and heavy workloads. Following the crisis, the sides reached agreements that included hiring additional workers and reinforcing operations.
Another factor expected to affect congestion is dedicated flights to Uman, which will begin September 6 and continue through September 17. According to the Airports Authority, the leading destinations during the holiday season are expected to be Greece, Cyprus, the United States, Italy and the United Arab Emirates.
Heavy traffic also is expected outside Ben Gurion Airport. About 81,000 passengers are expected to pass through Ramon Airport, about 60,000 through Haifa Airport, and around half a million through the land border crossings with Jordan and Sinai during September and the holidays. Of those, about 190,000 are expected to pass through the Rabin crossing in the Arava, about 153,000 through the Allenby crossing, about 100,000 through the Begin crossing and about 55,000 through the Jordan River crossing.
The Airports Authority recommends that passengers check in advance which terminal their flight departs from, complete check-in from home and print baggage tags at self-service stations. Passengers traveling with carry-on luggage only who have already checked in can use the fast-track lane in Sector W in Terminals 1 and 3.
The Airports Authority is also urging reservists and members of the security forces to carefully check their bags before arriving at the airport and make sure no ammunition components have been left inside.