El Al seeks international help to access Saudi airspace
Israel's flag carrier contacts IATA, PM Benjamin Netanyahu seeking help in competing with Air India by obtaining permission to fly over Saudi airspace on direct flights to India; in letter to IATA chief, El Al CEO demands 'equal overfly rights for all carriers over Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, opposing any form of discrimination.'
Israel's flag carrier El Al has asked an airline industry lobby group to help it access Saudi Arabian airspace, so it can compete with Air India's planned route between India and Israel.
The request came in a letter on Wednesday from El Al's chief executive to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), in which he said he has also approached Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Saudi Arabia does not recognize Israel, although there has been a thawing of the relationship between the US allies, with a shared concern over Iranian influence in the region. Granting an Israeli airline access to its air space by lifting a 70-year-old ban, however, would mark a dramatic diplomatic shift.
The appeal is a response to plans revealed by Air India last month to begin direct flights to Tel Aviv which pass through Saudi airspace, a shorter route so far off-limits to all Israel-bound commercial planes. There has been no official announcement whether Air India has received permission to fly over Saudi soil for its proposed thrice-weekly flights.
El Al's CEO has now turned to the head of IATA, Alexandre de Juniac, saying he understood no such permission would be granted to Israeli jetliners and asking Juniac to step in to prevent "an uneven playing field."
"I am approaching you and kindly requesting IATA to intervene and to represent aviation industry's interest by advocating equal overfly rights for all carriers over the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and opposing any form of discrimination," CEO Gonen Usishkin wrote in the letter seen by Reuters.
IATA's membership includes 280 airlines in 120 countries.
Usishkin said he has also requested help from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resolve the issue.
El Al has yet to receive a response.
El Al currently flies four weekly flights to Mumbai, but these take seven hours rather than five as they take a route south towards Ethiopia and then east to India, avoiding Saudi airspace. Shortening the route would also be a significant cost-cutter.
The proposed India-Israel route is a result of strengthening ties between the two countries, as Air India reported it planned to commence operations mid-March on a direct line from New Delhi to Tel Aviv. Final talks began during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's recent visit to India, during which he convened with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In addition to the economic agreements signed by the two colleagues, the pair also signed an aviation agreement determining changes will be made possible to flight pricelists and security arrangements, and that coordination on the matter between the parties will be strengthened.
The national Indian air carrier received a 750,000 euro (NIS 3.2 million) grant from the Tourism Ministry to operate the line, which is expected to provide an additional boost to improving relations between the countries.
In his letter Usishkin, who became CEO two weeks ago, said Air India's flights are scheduled to begin on March 6, citing slot information from Israel's Airports Authority.
Itay Blumenthal contributed to this report.
