In a Facebook post, an Israeli passenger who flew with Chinese carrier Hainan Airlines said that the company had removed Israel from the map displayed to its passengers. Jerusalem and Tel Aviv appear on the map of the company's routes, but the country is labeled "The Palestinian Territories" instead of Israel.
Following the appearance of the post, Minister of Transport Yisrael Katz ordered the Israel Airports Authority to contact the Chinese airline's representatives, and to demand that they correct the map of the company's routes immediately.
Hainan Airlines said, "We give our thanks for directing our attention to this unfortunately technical mistake. The company is taking action with the external software provider to correct its maps. Israel appears clearly on the maps in a close-up. We will continue promoting Israel in China as a tourist destination, as we have always done, with great pride."
Hainan Airlines, which recently began Tel Aviv-Beijing flights, is not the only one with this attitude to Israel's territory and cities. A recent passenger on Turkish Airlines said that an English-language map of the company's routes showed Jerusalem under the name "Al Quds."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 27, 2016
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