Israel's new coalition government will allow only a partial privatisation of the country's national carrier El Al, which means that the ban on the airline flying on the sabbath will remain in force (Flight International, 4-11 February).
Mafdal, a relatively moderate religious party and member of the coalition, will not allow prime minister Ariel Sharon to privatise the airline fully.
Sources in the ministry of transport say the government will allow only the sale of up to 49% of El Al, to maintain the carrier's status as a state-owned airline. The plan is to base the prospectus on the 2002 results that are expected to show a $31 million loss.
The sources say the El Al sell-off is high on Sharon's priority list, but the likely war in Iraq may further delay it.
Source: Flight International