Saudi Arabia And Bahrain Reportedly Approve All Israeli Flights To Overfly Their Airspace!
Things are moving quickly in the Middle East!
The stunning news last month was the Israel-UAE peace deal, quickly followed up with an El Al flight to...
Israir Applies To Fly Nonstop Between Tel Aviv And Dubai Next Month!
Just a few weeks ago the United Arab Emirates wouldn't allow visitors to enter with an Israeli passport.
Now there is a peace agreement, El...
[Update: Now Confirmed] Saudi Arabia Reportedly Approves Israel-United Arab Emirates Flights To Overfly Their Airspace!
Update, 9/2: This report from 2 weeks ago has now been confirmed. Saudi Arabia will allow all airliners headed to or from the UAE...
[Update: Flight Landed!] El Al Gets Permission For Its First Flight Over Saudi Arabian Airspace To Abu Dhabi; The Shocking Reason It Will Fly...
Update: El Al's flight 971 flew over Saudi Arabia to Abu Dhabi, cutting the flight time from over 7 hours to just 3 hours...
Israel Won’t Open Borders To Foreign Nationals In September
Israel is extending its ban on foreign nationals for the month of September.
The country will essentially be closed for tourism during the normally peak...
Grandparents Can Now Visit Israel If They Had A Grandchild Born There Since March
Disclaimer: The health of DansDeals readers is this website’s paramount concern. For your sake and the sake of those around you, consider staying at...
[Update: Now Confirmed] El Al Is Cancelling All Flights Until October
Update, 8/18: El Al has finally officially confirmed that they are cancelling all flights through September 30th. Meanwhile, their competitors are operating sold out...
נוספים [עדי ראיה נוספים מעידים] עדת ראיה חולקת את מה ההתרחשות אליה היא היתה עדה בטיסת יונייטד מס’ 85, “לא היתה שום אפליה”.
This is a translation of this post into Hebrew thanks to DDF Member Exgingi.
עדכון: זה עתה דיברתי עם סול ואווה ח. אשר ישבו במושבים...
[Update: Students From Green Countries Will Be Exempt From Quarantine] Israel Will Begin To Lift Mandatory Quarantine On Sunday; A Route For Eligible Americans...
Update, 8/15: Chaim V'Chesed reports that Israel has decided that students coming from "Green" countries will be exempt from quarantine. They also note that...
AMAZING! Israel And The United Arab Emirates Agree To Full Normalization Of Relations And Direct Flight Agreements!
President Trump just announced that Israel and the UAE have agreed to a full normalization of their relations!
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1293922803419353088
This is amazing for better Middle East...
So You Want To Rescue El Al? Be Prepared For A Dirty Fight
El Al is broke.
Their operations have been suspended since March 27th and all flights have been wiped off the schedule until October. They're being sued...
Israel Grants Permit To Eli Rozenberg To Buy El Al, But Will El Al Sell?
Globes is reporting that Israel has approved Eli Rozenberg's application to buy a controlling stake in El Al.
Getting that permit was a precondition for...
Reader Questions: What Plane Will American Fly And How Many Miles Will I Need For American’s New Tel Aviv Flight?
The most surprising Israel flight news this month was that American will fly nonstop from JFK to the holy land.
They plan to launch service...
Is It Fair For Schools To Force Students To Pay Cash For Tickets On An Airline With No Active Flights And $400MM In Outstanding...
Earlier this week I shared my advice on which airline students hoping to study in Israel for the year should use for maximum flexibility,...
Israel Is Expected To Grant Entry Permission For Foreign Students; Are Some Institutions Insisting On Students Flying El Al?
Chaim V'Chessed reports that Israeli Interior Minister Aryeh Deri and Health Minister Yuli Edelstein announced that foreign students will receive permission to enter the...
Israel Won’t Open Borders To Foreign Nationals In August
As expected, Israel will not open their borders to foreign nationals in August.
There are exceptions, including returning married students, people attending the wedding of a...
Reader Question: Which Airline Should I Use To Book Travel For My Child Hoping To Study In Israel This Year?
DansDeals reader and CEO of Shmais.com Levi Hodakov reached out to me last week to figure out how to send his daughter to seminary in...
[Update: Now Confirmed] El Al Appears To Be Cancelling All Flights Until September!
Update: As speculated below, El Al has now confirmed that all flights are suspended through August 31st.
Originally posted on 7/5:
With Israel's borders closed to foreign...
Ouch! Israel Will Now Allow Airlines To Delay Issuing Flight Refunds For Years
Last week Israel agreed to potentially take control of El Al if a private buyer can't be found for the struggling carrier.
El Al owes...
Israel Adds More Exceptions To Ban On Foreign Nationals
Israel closed their borders to foreign nationals back in March.
Unfortunately with COVID-19 cases trending up and setting new daily records there, that ban isn't...
United Is Now Selling Seats Nonstop From Chicago To Tel Aviv, While El Al Raises The White Flag; Plus, Scheduling Explained
A few days ago I wrote about the launch of United's newest nonstop route to Tel Aviv, from their hometown of Chicago.
United will start...
Finally! United Will Launch Nonstop Service Between Chicago And Tel Aviv!
This has been a long time coming!
United just announced that starting in early September they will fly 3 times weekly between Chciago and Tel...
Will El Al Will Be Nationalized Again Or Should It Be Allowed To Fail And Start With A Clean Slate?
El Al's board has finally agreed to accept the government's bailout terms.
The headlines all say the airline will be nationalized are misleading.
A $250MM loan...
After Pilot Dispute, El Al Calls Their Bluff And Suspends All Flights Indefinitely
El Al has been at the negotiating table for months with their labor unions to extract concessions that would allow for the airline to...
DansDeals Readers Share What It’s Like To Fly To Israel And Go To A Quarantine Hotel
There have been several interesting reports of flying to Israel on the DansDeals Facebook Group. I figured that it would be worth sharing a...
Will You Accept A 120% Future Travel Voucher From El Al In Lieu Of A Cash Refund?
The Marker is reporting that El Al will offer travelers the option of accepting a travel voucher equal to 120% of the ticket price...
Israel Won’t Open Borders To Foreign Nationals In July
The Jerusalem Post is reporting that Israel will not open their borders to foreign nationals in July. Previously the ban was extended to June...
It Doesn’t Sound Like Americans Will Be Visiting Israel This Summer…
Israel is currently banning foreigners from entering the country until July 1st. That deadline has been extended multiple times.
Prime Minster Netanyahu said in a...
[Updated] Another Etihad Plane Is En-Route To Israel Without Palestinian Authorization, This Time In Full Etihad Livery
Update: The flight has landed at Ben Gurion airport!
You can listen to a clip of the ATC audio below. The image is from the...
El Al Appears To Be Cancelling Some Flights Through March 2021 And Beyond
With Israel's borders closed to foreign nationals through at least June 30th, El Al remains in hibernation mode. The airline is negotiating with the...
This Morning’s Strike At Ben Gurion Is Just Another Reason Why You Should Avoid Thursday Evening Flights To Israel
At 3am this morning I got messages from several readers about a sudden IAA (Israel Airports Authority) strike that threatened to halt outbound and...
Israel Voids All Entry Permits For Unmarried Foreign Students!
Israel was one of the first countries to ban foreign nationals due to coronavirus.
Recently they started easing restrictions, allowing in foreign students and people...
Israel Won’t Open Borders To Foreign Nationals In June
Globes is reporting that Israel will not open their borders to foreign nationals in June. Previously the ban was extended to June 15 and...
[Updated With Extended Foreigners Ban And Cancellations] Roundup Of Airlines Cancelling Service To/From Israel Due To Coronavirus, And When Service Is Scheduled To Restart
Update, 5/20: Israel has extended their ban on foreigners and mandatory quarantine for returning citizens through at least 6/15. Returning residents can apply for...
El Al Has Started Processing Refunds For Cancelled Flights!
A few weeks ago, I called out El Al for not issuing refunds on cancelled flights, in violation of US law.
El Al said they...
Israel Ends Forced Hotel Quarantines For Israelis Returning From Abroad
Since April 1st, Israel has required Israelis returning from abroad to be taken to a hotel for a 2 week quarantine
That requirement is now...
Enough Is Enough: The Time Is Now For El Al To Issue Refunds For Cancelled Flights And Stop Violating DoT Policy!
Up until April 3rd, several airlines cancelling flights were refusing to issue cash refunds. JetBlue and United were 2 of the worst domestic offenders...
Israel Will Now Allow Airlines 90 Days To Provide Refunds For Cancelled Flights
The Israeli government has approved a temporary amendment to their aviation law to allow airlines 90 days to issue cash refunds for flights that...
Israel Temporarily Suspends All Flights To Israel; Return To Regular Flight Schedule Not Expected Until September
Update: Israel approved measures on Sunday to force all arriving passengers into quarantine hotels and flights should be allowed to resume, though several have...
United Extends Ticket Validity To 2 Years, Ends 1 Year Wait For Refunds; Tel Aviv Flight Changes Mean You Can Now Get A Refund!
Typically airline tickets must be used within 12 months of when they're issued. United announced that tickets purchased between 5/1/19-3/31/20 are valid for...
