Canadian national airline Air Canada announced it won't resume flights to Ben Gurion Airport until June after it renewed flights to Israel from Toronto in April for the first time since the start of the war in Gaza. American aviation group United Airlines’ return to Israel which was scheduled for April 20 is now also uncertain.
Israel's airspace was closed for seven hours last week during Iran’s attack on the country. Ben Gurion Airport has been operating as usual since then, but many foreign airlines have yet to resume operations in Israel.
On Wednesday, 50,200 passengers are expected to pass through Ben Gurion Airport on 298 international flights. In total, 26,000 passengers are set to depart on international flights, and about 24,200 passengers will arrive in Israel.
Another airline that has yet to return to Ben Gurion Airport since the Iranian attack is Air India, which has so far canceled its flights to the country until April 21. On Tuesday, the British low-cost carrier EasyJet announced it decided to suspend its flights to Tel Aviv for the rest of the summer season until October 27 due to the ongoing security situation. EasyJet resumed flights to Israel last month with routes to London (Luton), Amsterdam, Berlin, Basel, Geneva, and Milan.
Nir Mazor, Deputy CEO of Israeli travel website Kishrey Teufa, told Ynet, "We can estimate that the suspension of flights by foreign airlines will affect flight prices, which will continue to rise again. Even if supply has somewhat increased, it’s still low compared to previous years, and the prices are higher.”
"We’re already seeing a shortage of flights for the coming summer, and it’s reasonable to assume the absence of low-cost and international airlines will only make the situation worse. In my estimation, prices will only go up, and there won't be many alternatives.”