Earlier this week, the Israeli Ministry of Transportation announced that Israir, an Israeli budget airline, will be launching flights between Israel and New York some time winter. The move will effectively end the monopoly that Israel’s flagship carrier El Al has had on the route since the war started, as other airlines refused to operate similar flights.
“Israir is in the advanced stages of leasing wide-body aircraft that will enable, for the first time in the company’s history, the operation of a direct line to New York,” said the Israeli Ministry of Transportation in an official statement.
According to the announcement, the company will operate four weekly flights from Tel Aviv to Newark Liberty International Airport once the plan receives U.S. regulatory approval.
The news comes as a welcome respite from the chaos currently plaguing the aviation space: American Airlines’ and United’s flights to Israel are still indefinitely suspended while El Al is being investigated for price gouging tickets given the lack of seats currently available.
Delta, on the other hand, has finally agreed to resume flights to the Israeli city starting April of 2025.
At the moment, Israir, which is owned by the Rami Levy Group, operates domestic flights to Eilat and international routes to a number of different European towns.
