Israeli airline Arkia announced on Tuesday that it will launch flights to Japan this fall.
The move by Israel’s third-largest carrier comes as Israelis are increasingly traveling to the Far East amid a burst of antisemitism in much of the West.
The airline said it will begin twice-weekly flights to Tokyo on October 25, with prices starting at $750 each way, challenging Israeli flag carrier El Al’s monopoly on the route.
Arkia inaugurated the first-ever flight from Tel Aviv to Vietnam earlier this year and is currently the only carrier, aside from El Al, flying nonstop to New York.
“After the success of the routes to New York and the Far East, and in light of the high demand we are seeing from the Israeli public, it was clear to us that Japan should be the next destination,”Arkia CEO Oz Berlowitz said.