Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich and Minister of Overseas Affairs Gideon Saar introduced on the weekend that they had been transferring forward with direct flights between Israel and Argentina. However the route will appeal to so few passengers that even simply twice weekly flights will want authorities incentives, and one journey trade supply stated they may find yourself making different, extra oblique routes, resembling to the US, costlier.
The explanatory notes to the ministers’ proposal say that the step has been taken “as a result of lack of direct flights between Israel and Latin American nations and as a result of existence of a political curiosity in strengthening ties with Argentina, inter alia within the gentle of its standing along with Israel within the worldwide area, and within the curiosity of creating financial relations.”
Thus, the Ministry of Financial system will set up a mechanism that may incentivize airways to function industrial flights between Israel and Argentina with a frequency of two weekly flights. “As a normal rule, the state doesn’t assist sure entities for revenue to be able to enhance their profitability,” it was written. “Based on the place of the skilled officers within the Overseas Ministry, there is a crucial political curiosity in working flight routes to Argentina.”
Ministry of Transport opposes
The Ministry of Transport opposes the proposal, and a letter from Civil Aviation Authority Director Shmuel Zakay, obtained by Globes, sheds gentle on the explanations for this. Based on Zakay, the one Israeli firm that meets the definitions for working such a flight and owns a wide-body plane is El Al. The proposal would incentivize it “to divert a wide-body plane, which is a restricted and costly technique of manufacturing, from a route in demand with the general public (the Us) to be able to function a sponsored route. This immediately harms the general public,” he wrote.
Based on him, “A lack of capability on a path to New York as a result of diversion of the aircraft will lead to a rise in fares on this route to be able to function a route that has no financial justification. Moreover, the diversion of the aircraft from working the path to the US will exacerbate the scarcity of seats.”
Zakai harassed that market intervention would hurt airways that transport passengers on connecting flights to Argentina, and that there’s an air reference to South American nations in a “community of connecting flights with a number of opponents as is customary in locations that do not need an financial justification for a direct flight.”
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Zakai proposes a brand new bilateral settlement with Argentina, which might permit airways to function such flights at their industrial discretion. The trade fears that to be able to fly a aircraft with out financial justification, passengers to high-demand locations within the US pays the value to be able to please the Argentineans.
No response has been forthcoming from both the Ministry of Finance or the Ministry of Overseas Affairs.
Printed by Globes, Israel enterprise information – en.globes.co.il – on June 9, 2025.
© Copyright of Globes Writer Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2025.
