El Al cancels regular flights until mid-April as war continues

Continued security threats keep Israel’s main international airport under tight restrictions.

By World Israel News Staff

Israel’s national carrier, El Al, has extended its blanket flight cancellations through April 18 following a security assessment, just days before a planned easing of restrictions at Ben Gurion Airport.

In a statement issued Sunday evening, the airline confirmed that all regularly scheduled outbound flights from Israel — and their corresponding return legs — will remain canceled through that date.

Despite the sweeping cancellations, El Al said it will continue operating a limited number of inbound “rescue flights” to bring Israelis stranded abroad back home, as well as emergency outbound flights to eight destinations. However, capacity remains extremely restricted.

“Due to the limited number of available seats, passengers awaiting assignment are being accommodated based on priority according to the original ticket issue date, with priority given to exceptional humanitarian medical cases,” the airline said.

Ben Gurion Airport is currently operating under strict limitations that make regular travel to and from Israel highly difficult. Outbound flights are capped at 100 passengers per aircraft, with only one flight permitted to take off per hour. While this marks a slight increase from the previous cap of 80 passengers, the restrictions still significantly limit travel options.

Officials say that, depending on ongoing security assessments, the number of outbound flights could increase to two per hour later this week. There is currently no cap on the number of passengers allowed on inbound flights.

With commercial air travel constrained, many travelers have been forced to seek alternative routes, including crossing overland into neighboring Egypt or Jordan before flying onward.

International airlines have also suspended service to Israel. United Airlines announced that its nonstop route from New York to Tel Aviv will remain suspended through September, while Delta Air Lines said it will not resume flights to Israel until at least the same timeframe.

Ben Gurion Airport remains a high-profile target for the Iranian regime. Earlier in the war, shrapnel from attacks damaged several private aircraft parked on the airport’s tarmac.