Delta Air Lines is restarting flights to Israel on Tuesday, becoming the latest major carrier to renew service suspended due to the Israel-Hamas war.
The moves comes two weeks after chief rival United Airlines resumed service to Tel Aviv, and ahead of the busy Passover and Easter travel season this month.
The Atlanta-based Delta said it is restoring its daily flights to Tel Aviv from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. The daytime service on Delta will add nearly 2,000 weekly seats on the popular New York-Tel Aviv route.
Chicago-based United, which operated the most flights to Israel of any U.S. carrier before the war, currently offers two daily flights to Israel out of its hub at nearby Newark.
Dallas-based American Airlines has stayed away entirely from Israel since the Hamas-led terrorist attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered the war and remains the only U.S. legacy carrier not to have restarted service.
Israel’s Arkia Airlines is now also offering thrice weekly flights to New York at a set price, while Israir plans to relaunch flights to the Big Apple in the future on a line it serviced last decade.
The moves by United and Delta effectively end the monopoly Israel’s flagship carrier, El Al, had on the lucrative transatlantic route through most of the 17-month war, which saw fares skyrocket amid charges of price gouging, with prices expected to drop after the holidays.
