Arkia Airlines and Israir, which operate international charter flights in a joint venture with foreign charter airlines on the London-Tel Aviv route, are considering halting flights this winter.
This would be a significant development, since charter flights, which are cheaper than regular flights, have been flown on this route regularly for many years without a break.
El Al Israel Airlines (TASE:ELAL) and British Airways (LSE:BAY;NYSE:BAB) make direct London-Tel Aviv flights, while other foreign airlines fly to other European destinations from Tel Aviv.
Arkia president and CEO Prof. Israel (Izzy) Borovich said the joint Arkia-Israir venture would consider increasing charter flights to the Far East. Arkia announced a few weeks ago that it would make charter flights to Thailand, after a hiatus of several years.
Tourism sources said regular tickets to London cost about $400, including taxes. Last winter, there were at least three weekly charter flights to London.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on October 12, 2004