The Israeli government has reversed a decision to make Arkia and Israir Israeli designated carriers, leaving just El Al holding the status.
The move, which came as a surprise to Arkia and Israir, is part of steps by the government to prepare El Al for privatisation. A year ago, the transport ministry announced that Arkia, Israel's largest charter airline, would become the sole designated carrier on services to Copenhagen, while Israir was designated as the country's sole carrier for Riga. More routes were expected to be awarded to the airlines following El Al's privatisation, but last month the decisions were reversed, re-establishing El Al's status as designated carrier on all its current routes. Arkia and Israir may appeal to the supreme court to try to overturn the decision.
As it stands, the ruling will only change when international traffic to Israel increases beyond 10.7 million passengers annually. The country's record year was 2000, when international traffic through the country's main gateway, Tel Aviv Ben Gurion, totalled 9.3 million passengers.
Source: Flight International
