Israeli airline Israir announced on Monday that it will launch flights to New York starting next week, going head to head with four other carriers on the lucrative transatlantic route as the Jewish holiday season gets underway.
Israel’s second-largest carrier said it plans to start thrice-weekly flights to New York on September 15, and will expand to daily service by the end of October.
Economy fares will begin at $800 each way or $1,600 round trip during this peak travel season.
The renewal of service to New York comes 18 years after the airline last serviced the route.
Israir operated transatlantic flights to New York from 2004 to 2008, when rising fuel prices forced it to suspend the route.
The move comes as U.S. carriers, led by Delta and United, return to Israel during the busy fall holiday season after months when service was frozen due to the war in Iran, sending airfares soaring.
Starting next week, five airlines are now scheduled to fly direct between the United States and Israel: El Al, Arkia, Israir, United and Delta.
