Boeing 777 from Emirates in Dubai: soon to be seen in Tel Aviv?
Simeon Lüthi/aeroTELEGRAPH
Israel and United Arab Emirates
Freedom deal is good news for Etihad and Emirates
Israel and the United Arab Emirates are planning direct flights between their states. This is particularly interesting for the airlines of the Emirates. It could also harm one airline.
Top-Jobs
TEST - Mitarbeiter (m/w/d) Customer Care & Rezeption
Flugdienstberater / Flight Dispatcher (m/w/x)
TR/NTR Captain on A220-300
Inspektor:in für Flugschulen (m/w/d)
In the midst of the corona crisis, something historic happened. On May, 21 and June, 9, two Etihad aircraft landed in Tel Aviv. The first one was an Airbus A330 with registration number A6-EYP, which had a neutral white paint scheme. The second time, a Boeing 787-9 with registration A6-BNA was openly displayed in the full paint scheme of the gulf carrier.
What would be an everyday event at most airports was a sensation for Israel. The country and the United Arab Emirates do not maintain diplomatic relations. And so there are no flights between the states. That's changing now.
El Al would have to take a huge detour
On Thursday (August, 13) the United Arab Emirates and Israel announced that they would establish diplomatic relations. They face «many common challenges and will mutually benefit from this historic achievement», they said. However, the deal brokered by the USA does not only involve the establishment of embassies in the countries. The declaration explicitly mentions the inclusion of «direct flights» among many other areas of cooperation such as tourism development.
Emirates and Etihad could thus offer flights from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Tel Aviv in the future, El Al from Tel Aviv to the Persian Gulf. For the Israeli national airline, however, the flights are not incredibly interesting. Since neither Saudi Arabia nor Iraq grants Israel overflight rights, El Al would have to fly to the United Arab Emirates with a huge detour.
Turkish Airlines strong in Israel
Etihad and Emirates could benefit doubly from the diplomatic thaw. So far Turkish Airlines is number two in Israel after El Al in terms of seating capacity. Many Israelis transfer to long-haul flights in Istanbul if they want to travel to destinations that no airline serves directly from Tel Aviv.
85 percent of the passengers who travel from Israel to the Turkish metropolis are transfer passengers to Europe or Asia. Now Abu Dhabi and Dubai are becoming alternatives.
Video
In Pakistan landete ein Airbus A320 von Pakistan International Airlines mit einem Rad zu wenig. Wo es geblieben war, wurde erst nach zwei Tagen klar.
Mit freiem Oberkörper hat ein junger Mann am irischen Airport einen Schalter an einem Gate verwüstet. Dass er dabei gefilmt wurde, schien ihn nicht zu stören - im Gegenteil.
Die Boeing 737 landete sicher, doch dann ging etwas schief. Ein Triebwerk des Jets von American Airlines fing in Denver Feuer - und nicht alle Fluggäste flohen über die Notrutschen.