Haim Hakham and Ran Pecker are lead candidates for job of El-Al's general manager.
"The El-Al airline will not fly on Sabbaths or holidays even after privatisation", said today Transport Minister Yitzhak Levy, on a visit to El-Al. The airline, he says, has succeeded in rehabilitating itself following the severe crisis of the early eighties, while operating under the aegis of the Official Receiver, and with no Sabbath flights. There is no reason why it should not continue operating in this format for the future too.
He added that El-Al will be one of the first companies to be privatised, in accordance with the general outlines sketched by the previous government. "In two meetings with the Prime Minister on this topic", said Levy, "it was agreed that steps would be taken quite soon. I am in favour of privatising El-Al by selling it to the public via the TASE (Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange) rather than to a strategic investor. This will enable the State to retain a strong golden share, so that certain basic principles can be maintained. I am presently conducting a survey on airline privatisation in Europe".
The two principal candidates for the job of general manager of El-Al are Haim Hakham and Brigadier-General (Res.) Ran Packer. This was reported today (Thursday) to Globes by senior aviation and economic sources. The two names, they say, have been submitted to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his consideration, and he is to decide on the appointment before the end of August.