When is Ben Gurion Airport re-opening - as Israel starts allowing outbound flights, restricted to 50 passengers per plane
Israel is expecting to let more than 1,000 passengers leave the country as Ben Gurion Airport partly re-opens.
Some outgoing flights will resume on today (Monday 23 June) from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport after departures were barred since June 13 amid the ongoing conflict with Iran. The flights, which have a strict limit of 50 passengers per plane, will allow stuck foreigners to return to their home countries for the first time since the outbreak of war and offer Israelis who need to leave the country a chance to do so.
In light of the restricted seat availability, priority on outbound flights was being given to life-saving, humanitarian and national security cases. Transportation Minister Miri Regev said: “We expect local airlines to operate 24 incoming repatriation flights arriving from international destinations on Monday, and on each outgoing flight, there will be a limit of 50 passengers leaving.
“We need to limit the number of passengers on planes on the tarmac during this challenging period when the airport can be a target. I believe that by the weekend, we will be able to weigh whether we can increase the number of passengers on outgoing flights, as well as the hours of flight operations, subject to the security situation and guidelines by the Home Front Command”.
Israel closed its airspace when it began attacking Iran’s nuclear program on June 13, leaving some 40,000 tourists stranded in the country with few options to leave other than via land border crossings with Egypt and Jordan, or via the maritime space, which has remained open. Since Wednesday, Israeli airlines — El Al, Israir and Arkia — have operated repatriation flights, mainly from Europe and the US, but only during daylight hours in light of the repeated nighttime missile barrages directed at Israel by Iran.
Since Wednesday, two repatriation flights per hour were permitted to land, disembarking Israeli travelers at Ben Gurion Airport, before taking off immediately, leaving the airport with no outgoing passengers on board. Israel has until now barred foreigners and Israeli citizens from leaving the country via air travel, saying that the restrictions are in place to avoid overcrowding and minimize the time planes spend on the ground at Ben Gurion Airport due to security risks and Home Front Command guidelines limiting the congregation of people.
Starting Monday, outgoing flights are operating exclusively from Ben Gurion Airport’s Terminal 3. Entry to the terminal is permitted to passengers with valid tickets only, with exceptions for those assisting travelers with special needs or unaccompanied minors.
Passengers on outbound flights have been advised to arrive by public transportation no more than two hours before their scheduled departure. For those arriving by private car, only quick drop-offs are permitted. Cafés in the departure hall and near the gates are open. Duty-free shops remain closed to limit time spent in the terminal.
Smaller carrier Arkia will operate a total of six repatriation flights to Larnaca, Athens, Vienna, Rome and Barcelona. Regev emphasized that a passenger purchasing a one-way ticket to leave Israel will only be able to buy a return flight ticket home for a date that is at least 30 days away from the departure date, according to the new outbound policy.