How to Find Flights Out of Israel
With the recent events in Israel, we wanted to provide our readers with a guide on what to expect when looking for a flight out of Israel and what your rights are as a passenger.
Previously this summer, a round trip flight out of Israel would cost $850-$1000 to New York City. If you tried booking a roundtrip Tel Aviv to New York City flight for January 2024 right now, it would cost you around $900. But with the list of airlines suspending flights to Israel piling up, ticket prices are skyrocketing. Passengers have paid upwards of $2000-$3000 for their departure tickets. Some airlines are offering a very limited quantity of roundtrip tickets to nearby destinations in Europe and Africa for $1500. El Al, Israel's largest airline, has New York roundtrips starting at $1300 for those who can wait one week to depart. Meanwhile, Ethiopian Airlines is operating round trip flights to Addis Ababa for under $700.
The FAA, EASA, and the Civil Aviation Authority of Israel have warned airlines to use caution while operating in Israeli airspace, but these authorities have not prohibited flights. On October 11, the U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory counseling Americans to reconsider travel to Israel and the West Bank and to not travel to the Gaza Strip.
El Al Airlines has operated its scheduled flights, and in fact is operating more flights in order to bring back reservists who were living abroad. Some non-Israeli airlines have decided to continue operating flights out of Israel, including Ethiopian Airlines, Emirates, Air India, AirSerbia, AirExplore (Slovakian charter), BlueBird (Greece), Tus (Cyprus), Pegasus (Turkey), RedWings (Russia). Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland have chartered flights for their citizens seeking to leave Israel. On Thursday, the United States announced it would begin charter flights on Friday to Athens and Frankfurt. United and Delta have announced they will be adding flights from Athens back to the United States.
Among the U.S. airlines, American Airlines has suspended its operations to Israel until December 4, while Delta has suspended its flights until October 31. Passengers can still book flights to Israel through these U.S. carriers, but different airlines will operate the flight. American Airlines will sell tickets on flights operated by El Al Airlines while United Airlines is selling tickets to flights operated by ITA Airlines. Delta Air Lines is also selling tickets operated by ITA Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.
El Al is offering flight credits to passengers who want to cancel a reservation and has offered free changes on flights, including without fare differentials on flights before October 21. Israel recently adopted passenger rights legislation similar to EU 261. If the airline in Israel cancels your flight or delays it by more than eight hours, you are entitled to a full refund.
