United Airlines will resume flights from Newark to Tel Aviv on July 21, with two flights per day from the New Jersey airport to Israel, the carrier announced Tuesday.
United will be the first American carrier to restart flights to Israel since the Middle Eastern nation closed its airspace on June 13 amid its latest war with Iran.
“Any decision by United to operate flights to Tel Aviv is made after a thorough assessment of operational considerations in the region, and in close coordination with our flight attendants and pilot unions,” the airline said in a statement.
Prior to Tuesday’s announcement, United had said it wouldn’t resume flights to Israel until July 31.
U.S. airlines have stopped and restarted service to Israel several times since Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7, 2023. While all carriers stopped service in the immediate aftermath of the violence, both United and Delta have since gone back and forth depending on conditions on the ground at Tel Aviv’s main airport.
United claimed it has flown more flights to Tel Aviv than any other U.S. carrier since the war broke out. American Airlines has not flown any direct flights to Tel Aviv during that time. Delta is not scheduled to resume direct flights to Tel Aviv until after Aug. 31.
Israel reopened its air space about two weeks ago after reaching a ceasefire agreement with Iran, but few major international airlines have returned, according to the Times of Israel. Air France was one of the first carriers to resume service when it did so on Monday.
With News Wire Services