Several days before Passover and Ben Gurion airport is almost empty and eerily quiet. There are not the exhausting long lines and delays usually associated with the days leading up to holidays. The only aircraft in service have either just landed or about to take off.
Ben Gurion airport director Udi Bar-Oz says, "There were supposed to be about 80,000 passengers and about 600 flights at Ben Gurion Airport today. In reality we have about 40 flights and a few thousand passengers."
The current restrictions at Ben Gurion Airport include a limit of 50 passengers on departing flights and a maximum of one aircraft per hour, due a series of operational and safety considerations, the Israel Airports Authority (IAA) explains. Operational elements are currently working at the airport that share the area, which make activity at the airport particularly sensitive
Authorities at Ben Gurion Airport are doing everything possible to reduce the length of time passenger planes spend on the ground. The reason is that the time when the plane is parked is the most dangerous time. For passengers, the most dangerous time is when they are already inside the plane, before takeoff or after landing. In such a situation, an incoming missile could cause a lot of damage, and this is something that is particularly feared. This is why the restrictions are in force.
Since the start of the war: NIS 300 million in lost income
IAA CEO Sharon Kedmi says, "We need to understand that from the moment the plane lands on the ground, reaches the runway until it attaches to the jet-bridge and then from the moment it detaches until it takes off, this is the area that is most risky and that is where we are most concerned, and we want the danger level there to be as low as possible. That is why we reduce the risk, and every day there are situation assessments, morning, noon and evening, and as you can see, things change. We started in one place, moved to another. The skies can close in one day, and they can also reopen."
And why are there no restrictions on incoming flights? The security check time for outgoing flights is significantly longer than the time it takes to disembark from the plane on incoming flights. With or without passengers, the goal is for the plane to be on the ground for as little time as possible
All of this has significant economic implications. The IAA revealed that in March alone, even before Passover began, there was a loss of income of about NIS 300 million. And as long as the security situation continues unchanged, the economic damage will continue. The month of Passover - whether in wartime or in routine - as long as the skies are open, is a time of peak demand, 1.65 million passengers were supposed to pass through Ben Gurion Airport during Passover. Right now, duty-free stores are almost completely closed, one of the most significant revenue streams for the IAA.
These are not the only economic blows the IAA is suffering. Foreign airlines are not expected to return to Israel in the near future, as long as restrictions remain in force at Ben Gurion Airport. This means zero revenue from airport taxes from foreign carriers.
At this stage, foreign airlines could not return to Ben Gurion airport even if they wanted to, as long as restrictions from the US and EU regulators are in effect. IAA employees are also not on unpaid leave, and continue to work around the clock. However, due to Home Front Command restrictions on the number of people authorized to be at the airport, they cannot work the normal number of hours. Working hours have been significantly reduced, and as workers paid by the hour they are also affected by the situation.
Egyptian border charges have jumped
With the closure of Ben Gurion Airport at the outbreak of the current campaign against Iran, the land border crossings have become Israel's new air gateways. Tens of thousands of Israelis who wanted to return to Israel were forced to come home via Egypt and Jordan, while airlines diverted their operations to alternative airports, firstly in Taba and later in Aqaba. According to the Ministry of Transport, 75,000 people have entered Israel via lands borders and 120,000 have departed. Minister of Transport Miri Regev addressed the increase in fees at the Taba crossing and said she plans to act on two fronts: contacting the Egyptian side with a request to reconsider the decision to raise the fee, and at the same time promoting an Israeli move to temporarily cancel the fees on the Israeli side until Independence Day.
Regev says that the cancellation of fees from the Israeli side requires a change in regulations, a decision by the IAA Council, as well as coordination with the Minister of Finance and approval by the Knesset's Economics Committee.
Regev also addressed the issue of Ramon Airport, which currently cannot be used as an alternative airport, and said that she had contacted the Minister of Defense and IDF Chief of Staff on the matter.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on March 31, 2026.
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