El Al will begin operating a limited number of one-way flights to Tel Aviv by Thursday, to gradually bring home the tens of thousands of Israelis stranded abroad by the war against Iran, Transport Minister Miri Regev said.
Arkia said it will also operate rescue flights, as soon as Israeli security officials give the go-ahead, from Athens, Larnaca, Rome, Paris and New York, including on Saturdays.
Monday’s announcements come as some 150,000 Israelis remain stranded abroad since the Jewish state closed its airspace to civilian traffic after launching a preemptive strike on Friday against Iranian nuclear and military sites.
Israir will operate rescue flights as well, but it has not put out an announcement yet and does not have a start date, as that is contingent on security approval.
The government rescue plan will include flights from several major cities that El Al services but will not include outbound travel at this stage. The airlines will announce the list of cities and flight times.
“We will carry out the gradual return of Israelis in a staged manner in coordination with the Ministry of Defense,” Regev said. “I am aware of the distress of Israelis wanting to return home, but we will not take a chance and allow a plane to land and then heaven forfend there is an event on the ground where we will need to explain how we allowed a plane to land with more than 300 people killed.
“I am asking those abroad to have patience. There is no reason to be under pressure. You are abroad. Enjoy,” she said.
El Al announced on Monday that it is suspending all regularly scheduled flights through June 23, but is preparing to operate a limited number of rescue flights from various destinations in coordination with the approval from government ministries. The flag carrier said that passengers whose flights have been canceled can register for the special return flights via a link on its website.
More than 60,000 passengers signed up on El Al’s registration site in the hour after the option was announced.
The head of Israel’s Civil Aviation Authority warned this weekend that it will take weeks before all Israelis stranded abroad will be able to fly home.
His remarks dampened hopes among some travelers that Israel would carry out immediate return flights from nearby countries, specifically Cyprus and Greece, as it has in past flare-ups of violence.
Israeli carriers have relocated their planes to Larnaca, Cyprus, and Athens, Greece, in line with the recommendations of a contingency plan developed ahead of the strike on Iran.
