Are journeys to the East from Israel about to become shorter? Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced today that El Al will shortly be allowed to fly over Oman. Netanyahu was speaking at a conference of Israeli ambassadors held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem. If El Al planes are allowed to overfly Oman, it will mean shorter flight times for flights to the Far East, which will benefit passengers and also the airline itself, which will save costs, enabling it to compete more effectively with lower fares. RELATED ARTICLES Air India to launch daily Tel Aviv-Delhi flights - report El Al petitions High Court on Air India Delhi flights Air India makes history flying to Israel over Saudi Arabia Singapore Airlines moving toward Tel Aviv flights Cathay Pacific to begin daily Tel Aviv - Hong Kong flights El Al has received no official notification, but the company welcomed the news. "El Al has received no official notice on the matter. Nevertheless, El Al welcomes the prime minister's diplomatic efforts to obtain any possible shortening of air routes to and from Israel that will work to the benefit of the Israeli consumer. As always, El Al seeks to ensure fair competition and equality of opportunity between the Israeli airlines and the foreign airlines," El Al said in a statement. El Al's comments on fair competition and equality of opportunity in the context of flights to the Far East relate to the exceptional permit awarded to Air India to overfly Saudi Arabia en route from Delhi to Tel Aviv and thus shorten the flight considerably. El Al petitioned the High Court of Justice over the matter. It later withdrew the petition, but continued to argue that the state was creating discrimination in letting Air India fly to Israel under these conditions, since El Al was not permitted to fly via Saudi Arabia. Singapore Airlines has also requested permission in principle to overfly Saudi Arabia, although direct flights between Israel and Singapore are not on the horizon at present. Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on December 10, 2018 © Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2018
