Terminal 1 at Ben Gurion Airport will reopen at the end of the month as Israel prepares for heavy summer travel, the Israel Airports Authority said Wednesday.
The move comes after Transportation Minister Miri Regev instructed the authority to resume operations at the terminal to increase passenger capacity.
Domestic flights will resume from Terminal 1 on June 28, and international flights will return there July 1, the authority said.
Still, airport officials warned that the broader crisis has not been fully resolved. Hundreds of thousands of summer airline tickets remain at risk of cancellation because of a shortage of aircraft parking spaces at Ben Gurion Airport, where dozens of American planes are parked.
Passengers were urged to check in advance which terminal their flight departs from and to follow updates from airlines and official airport channels.
The announcement came a day after the Airports Authority froze, at the last minute, a move that could have led to mass cancellations of flights during the summer and the Jewish holiday season in the fall. A letter the state had planned to send airlines, instructing them to prepare to reduce flight schedules, was put on hold after progress was made in removing some of the American aircraft parked in Israel.
Separately, Israeli airline Arkia said Wednesday at the Airlines Economics aviation conference that it signed an agreement with leasing company AerCap to lease two Airbus A321 aircraft for eight years.
The planes are expected to join Arkia’s fleet in 2027. Once delivered, the company will operate nine A321 aircraft.
Arkia said the move will complete its transition to a uniform Airbus fleet, improving operational efficiency and supporting expansion plans. The two aircraft, manufactured in 2015, will undergo cabin upgrades and be repainted in Arkia colors before delivery.