Ryanair may permanently end Israel service over Houthi attacks

After repeated suspensions since the October 7th massacres, Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair hints at a permanent exit from Israeli airspace.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary said on Monday that the airline “beginning to lose patience” with “flights to and from Tel Aviv” due to repeated missile attacks targeting Ben-Gurion Airport, implying that the low-cost carrier is weighing permanently suspending service to the Jewish State.

“If they’re going to keep being disrupted by these security disruptions, frankly, we’d be better off sending those aircraft somewhere else in Europe,” O’Leary told analysts, at a media conference following the release of Ryanair’s annual results.

O’Leary added that Ryanair is expected to resume servicing Israel in early June.

Notably, O’Leary appeared to place blame on Israel for being attacked, and did not mention that the disruptions were due to Yemen-based Houthi terrorists targeting the airport with ballistic missiles.

The Irish airline cancelled flights to and from Israel in the wake of the October 7th, 2023 Hamas massacres.

Ryaniar did not fly to Israel for about four months, only resuming its routes in February 2024.

However, the airline swiftly cancelled its flights just a month later in March 2024, citing the war between Israel and Hezbollah.

The carrier resumed flights to Israel for a second time in March 2025, but again suspended service around two months later due to a Houthi missile striking the grounds of Ben-Gurion Airport in early May.

In a statement release weeks before the strike, the Houthis announced that they were imposing an “aerial blockade” on the transportation hub.

“Please take the decision of the Yemeni Armed Forces seriously, as Ben-Gurion Airport is no longer safe until the aggression on Gaza stops,” a Houthi spokesman said in a statement.

The Houthis explicitly warned major international carriers, including United Airlines, easyJet, British Airways, Air France, and Turkish Airlines, against flying to Israel.