The crisis gripping Ben Gurion International Airport took a new turn Thursday, spreading beyond overwhelmed terminals and frozen check-in counters to reach the pilots and crew members who were supposed to fly the planes after the Israel Airport Authority workers said they were short-staffed and announced a de-facto strike. Due to the disruptions, the airport announced a de-facto halt to incoming flights, which took effect around 2 p.m. on a rolling basis. Complete suspension of landings was expected in the afternoon.
Departures were also affected, proceeding at a slow pace according to an updated flight schedule. An exceptional NOTAM (Notice to Airmen – an official aviation advisory issued to airlines) was issued, stating: "Landings have been banned for six hours due to a labor dispute."
Transport Minister Miri Regev responded to the crisis from Morocco, saying: "I have instructed the Israel Airports Authority management to immediately petition the Labor Court against the workers' committee, in order to compel them to halt this thuggish and illegal strike. Whoever made the decision to take tens of thousands of Israeli citizens hostage will pay a heavy price."
Video: Moshe Ben Simhon
The Transport Workers Union within the Histadrut (Israel's national labor federation) denied issuing any directive to stop work. "The attempt to present the chaos at Ben Gurion as the result of a 'wildcat strike' distorts the truth and deflects attention from the real failure: a severe and ongoing staffing shortage and inadequate preparation for the summer travel surge.
"For many months, the Transport Workers Union warned the Israel Airports Authority management and the Transport Minister that the existing workforce is incapable of handling the projected loads. The surge at Ben Gurion did not arrive by surprise. The writing was on the wall, the warnings went unanswered – and now the public is paying the price."
What began with the suspension of check-in for departing flights and severe congestion throughout the terminal has now extended to the pilots and crew members themselves. A message sent to crew members stated, "Due to a strike at Ben Gurion, all crews are asked to stop and not proceed to the airport."
The risk: flight crews could wait for hours and be unable to operate their flights
The instruction was driven by more than logistics. Pilots and crew members operate under strict legal limits on the length of their duty periods and mandatory rest windows. If crews travel to Ben Gurion only to sit idle while the disruption continues, those hours of waiting count against their permitted duty time – potentially leaving them legally unable to fly once operations resume. Crews who had not yet departed for the airport were therefore told to hold and wait for further guidance.
Airport authority response: this is a workers' committee strike
The Israel Airports Authority (the government body managing Israel's airports) confirmed that the disruptions were being directed by the recognized union body at the airport. "The Israel Airports Authority is currently dealing with work disruptions, directed by the union, which are affecting operational activity and service to the traveling public," the authority said. "Management is demanding that employees immediately cease any action that disrupts normal operations and restore full routine activity." The authority added that it regards "any deliberate action that could harm the traveling public and the normal functioning of Ben Gurion – particularly during the high-volume summer period" as extremely serious. "Should the disruptions not cease, the Authority intends to urgently approach the Labor Court (Israel's specialized tribunal for employment disputes) and request its intervention. All parties at Ben Gurion are working to minimize the impact of the incident and to preserve, as much as possible, operational continuity and passenger service."
Arkia (one of Israel's domestic and regional airline) said it had updated information on the status of its flights as follows:
- Barcelona 271/272 – flight on hold.
- Prague 281 – flight departing, check-in underway.
- Corfu 053 – flight on hold.
- Eilat 815 – flight departing.
- Athens 1213 – flight on hold.
- Paris 1749 – flight on hold.
- Tbilisi 1417 – flight on hold.
- Tivat 367 – flight departing.
- Rome 1335 – flight on hold.
- Batumi 419 – flight on hold.
- Paphos 151 – flight on hold.
- Tirana 411 – awaiting update.
