The missile barrage on Wednesday morning targeting central Israel, which triggered sirens in many localities and led to missile fragments falling in Ra'anana and an Iranian-made Hezbollah Fateh-110 solid-fueled surface-to-surface ballistic missile landing near Ben Gurion Airport, did not cause significant delays in the flight schedule.
The airspace was closed for a few minutes, but the airport quickly resumed operations without major delays in departures and arrivals. The morning barrage was not the only incident in the area. In the afternoon, another launch triggered sirens in dozens of communities around Ben Gurion Airport. The IDF reported that a single projectile was intercepted, and there were no effects on the airspace.
Security camera captures missile impact
"We heard the loud boom. I was in one of the parking lots when the sirens started, and we ran to a shelter. It was a bit scary," said Eden Zarka, a taxi dispatcher.
Other airport workers were less concerned: "Nothing different happened this time. We did what we always do during a siren—went to the shelter. Even what happened here with the falling fragment isn't really scary. It's quite far from the terminal."
Currently, mostly Israeli airlines are operating at Ben Gurion Airport, with only about 16,000 passengers passing through the airport daily. Nevertheless, Wednesday's barrage caused disruptions already visible in the aviation industry.
Air Europa, whose flight was en route to land, turned back with passengers to Madrid. Additionally, the company's Thursday flight from Madrid to Tel Aviv was canceled, with passengers notified that they could choose an alternative flight from Barcelona to Tel Aviv or receive a refund.
Lital Bachar, 38, a resident of the Jordan Valley, decided on Tuesday to surprise her husband for his birthday, and the two arrived at the airport with tickets to Athens. "We heard about what happened before we left the house, but it didn't cause us to cancel our plans," she said.
"We know the kids are with their grandparents in a place with a shelter. We live in the Jordan Valley, so we're always armed and alert. Missiles are not under my control, so we went on a much-needed vacation. We wish it would end, but we want to keep living."
Tal and Tomer Ben David arrived at the airport with 28 other salsa enthusiasts, on their way to Belgrade for an international salsa festival this weekend. They started their morning in a safe room at their apartment in Netanya, and when they heard about the incident near Ben Gurion Airport, they got a bit anxious.
"There was some buzz about it," Tomer said, and Tal added casually, "We dealt with it matter-of-factly. It was four hours before the flight, and we thought everything would return to normal. Part of winning is that they won't disrupt our lives, so we came."
The cancellation of Air Europa's morning flight to Madrid caused trouble for many, but Yechiel Attias from Ra'anana, who was supposed to fly with his wife and brother to celebrate a birthday, quickly found a layover through Athens. "The surprise was that they didn't inform us about the cancellation until we got here, but we're here and found a way to get to the Spanish capital, and here we are."
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