“Globes” has learned that El Al has decided to cancel its direct Israel-Chicago flight as of this week and until further notice.
The reason cited is the security situation, which has caused a sharp decline in the number of tourists coming from the US, as well as a decline in the number of Israelis traveling to North America. El Al’s Chicago route is mostly based on incoming tourists.
A senior El Al executive confirmed the announcement today, saying that the three weekly flights by Boeing 767s to the Illinois city will be cancelled as of this week. The Boeing 767 can carry up to 200 passengers.
El Al flew to Chicago every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and is now looking for alternative solutions for travelers, many of whom are businesspeople. The probably solution will be for Chicago-bound passengers to transfer in New York to North American Airlines, a US company in which El Al is a partner.
El Al’s North American routes manager Moshe Shamai told “Globes” that the New York route, which is the company’s main source of revenue, will also be cut back. It is estimated that 20% of the 20 weekly flights from Israel to New York will be cut because of the situation.
“We estimate,” said Shamai, “that the situation will improve in April, as far as the number of passengers to North America is concerned.”
Published by Israel's Business Arena on 29 August 2000