Atlas Air agrees to operate a new 747-400 freighter for EL AL

Atlas Air Worldwide announced this week that Atlas Air and EL AL Israel Airline have entered into an agreement that enables EL AL to expand its reach and cargo lift for its customers.

Under the terms of the ACMI (aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance) agreement, Atlas Air will operate a Boeing 747-400 Freighter for capacity on significant routes, mainly Liege – Tel Aviv, beginning in January 2020.

The 747-400 will provide additional revenue cargo volume to serve the strong growth in demand across EL AL’s freight network.

“This new agreement will allow EL AL to capitalize on the state-of-the-art service solutions provided by our aircraft,” said John Dietrich, President and Chief Executive Officer, Atlas Air Worldwide. “We welcome EL AL as a new customer and look forward to supporting EL AL as it continues to capture market opportunities and enhance its position as a leader in Israel’s cargo industry.”

Ronen Spira, head of EL AL’s Cargo Division, said, “We are committed to providing our customers with a variety of cargo solutions. This strategic initiative with Atlas Air enables us to provide our customers with a stable and high-quality operation for all types of cargo. Atlas Air’s fleet of 747 aircraft is well-suited to support EL AL’s operations and schedules.”

Recommended for you...

EL AL to introduce more SPACE!

EL AL the Israeli airline has announced that it will be introducing its new EL AL SPACE across its fleet during the first part of this year.

The carrier will also be introducing new EL AL SPACE seats across its fleet!

EL AL SPACE seats will offer added seating comfort in Economy Class, with spacious personal space at the front of the cabin and at exit seats, on all the airline’s aircraft – 737, 787 and 777 – and to all EL AL destinations, beginning March 29, 2020.

EL AL SPACE seats offer larger legroom (34"/ 86cm 33"/84 cm) compared to Economy Class seats.

EL AL SPACE seating will be given free of charge to entitled premium members of the Matmid Frequent Flyer Club , to FLY CARD PREMIUM credit cardholders and to passengers who purchase FLEX tickets, based on availability at the time of reservation.

EL AL SPACE seats are offered per destination and flight segment:

• Short-haul European destinations: Larnaca, Athens, Sofia and Bucharest: $39

• Other European destinations, including Warsaw and Moscow: $59

• Long-haul destinations: USA, Canada, South Africa and the Far East: $99

EL AL posts its latest results......

EL AL, the airline of Israel has released its latest results, which show a positive growth in seat availability, passenger traffic and market share during the third quarter of 2019.  Seat Availability was up 8%, passenger traffic saw an increase of 6.5% and the airline experienced a boost of 2% in market share.

At the end of the third quarter, the carrier will have 12 new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft in its fleet, four additional 787-8 aircraft will be added to the company's fleet by the end of the first quarter of 2020.

EL AL's revenues increased to approximately USD 647 million, whilst operating expenses for the quarter amounted to approximately USD 505 million. It was good news for the airline as fuel expenses decreased by approximately USD 13.5 million, both as a result of the decrease in jet fuel market prices and as a result of using the new efficient 787-9 aircraft.

EL AL Israel Airlines releases its latest figures.

• The Company's revenues for the quarter amounted to approximately USD 584 million compared to approximately USD 547 million for the second quarter of 2018, indicating an increase of about 7%, mainly due to the growth in the number of passengers and the increase in revenue per passenger, which was attributable, among others, to the timing of Passover that occurred in the second quarter of the year.

• The Company recorded a net profit of USD 83 thousand for the second quarter of 2019, compared to the loss of USD 18 millionrecorded for the second quarter of 2018; the improvement in results was attributable to the increase in revenues and a decrease in operating expenses, mainly fuel expenses, due to the drop in the fuel price and quantity consumed, which was affected by the operation of the cost-saving 'Dreamliner' aircraft.

EL AL Israel Airlines & Alaska Airlines celebrate expanded global partnership

With the inaugural EL AL flight between Tel Aviv and San Francisco, EL AL and Alaska Airlines signed an expanded global partnership allowing their members to more easily connect and earn mile.

The financially troubled Israeli airline EL AL has expanded its route network and expanded its relationship with US air carrier Alaska Airlines today.  The partnership includes a reciprocal frequent flyer agreement which was signed by the CEOs of each airline at a ceremony soon after the arrival of the first EL AL flight from Tel Aviv to San Francisco.

This agreement is in addition to the codeshare agreement that recently came into effect between the airlines allowing EL AL to place its "LY" code on various Alaska Airlines "AS" flights in the U.S.

Profits down for El Al Israel Airlines as it releases its third quarter results

Profits continue to fall for El Al Israel Airlines during the third-quarter of 2018, the airline confirmed after releasing its latest results on Wednesday, November21st.

The Company's revenues for the third quarter of 2018 amounted to around USD $642 million, up some 2.5% compared to $626 million the airline achieved during the same periods in 2017. However, despite this rise in revenue the airline saw operating profits fall by approximately 11% to $62 million, last years third-quarter result was $69 million. Consequentially, the net profit was down to $42 million from $49 million.

In the latest figures released by the carrier show that during the first nine months of the year demonstrated a 4% growth in revenues to $1,649 million.  Yet losses reported before tax for the first nine months of 2018 amounted to around $26 million compared to a profit before tax of $47 million for the first nine months of 2017.

Hong Kong Airlines and El Al codeshare deal starts

Hong Kong Airlines’ codeshare partnership with EL AL Israel Airlines will kick off on 20 September 2018, with the former adding its “HX” code on the latter’s flights between Hong Kong and Tel Aviv. Reciprocally, EL AL will add its “LY” code on Hong Kong Airlines flights between Hong Kong and Auckland in New Zealand, as well as Seoul in South Korea.

EL AL gets retrojet painted Dreamliner as losses mount

The Israeli airline El Al saw its sixth Boeing 787 Dreamliner arrive at its home base of  Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv on the 14th, resplendent in a retro livery. 

The twinjet, registration 4X-EDF arrived at around 08:50 local time on 14th August, following a flight from Boeing in Seattle. The paint job on the 'retrojet' dates from the sixties when it appeared on the airlines Boeing 707's and has been applied to this, the latest aircraft to join the El Al fleet to help commemorate the carrier’s 70th anniversary.

El Al facing a boycott for discrimination against women

The Israeli airline El Al is facing fresh boycott calls this week over making woman passengers move in favour of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, despite court orders against the policy.

The latest calls for action against El Al comes after reports started circulating from a passenger on a New York JFK - Tel Aviv El Al flight on Friday. where four ultra-Orthodox men refused to take their assigned seats because they happened to be next to women.

Khen Rotem, used social media to document the incident that saw the men create such a fuss and disturbance, the aircraft missed its slot time and was delayed by more than an hour. 

According to Khem, one of the men was so religious, he boarded the flight with his eyes closed to avoid even looking at women. The men refused to speak with female flight attendants, only conversing with the male staff members.   The flight attendants were busy “putting personal practice of faith ahead of individual rights and civil order,” Rotem wrote on social media, causing the flight to be delayed. 

The crew then moved female passengers away so the men could take their seats and the flight continue to its destination. The events come almost exactly a year after the airline was told by a court in Israel that airline employees cannot ask female passengers to move seats to accommodate men. 

As a result of the news, a major technology company has announced its boycott of  El Al, Barak Eilam, CEO of NICE Systems, confirmed his company would not fly with the Israeli flag-carrier until it changed its “practice and actions discriminating (of), women. - At NICE we don't do business with companies that discriminate against race, gender or religion,"

Hong Kong Airlines and EL AL Israel Airlines announce codeshare agreement

Mr Wang Liya, Hong Kong Airlines and Mr Michael Strassburger, EL AL
 sign the codeshare agreement

Hong Kong Airlines and EL AL Israel Airlines have entered into a codeshare agreement. Subject to government approval, Hong Kong Airlines will place its “HX” code on EL AL’s flights between Hong Kong and Tel Aviv. Reciprocally, EL AL will add its “LY” code on Hong Kong Airlines flights between Hong Kong and Auckland in New Zealand, Tokyo (Narita) and Osaka in Japan, as well as Seoul in South Korea.

More losses at troubled El Al

The Israeli airline, El Al released its latest set of figures this week and they showed an 11% increase in revenues to USD 464 million in the first quarter of 2018. A 2.5% increase in the number of passengers with an increase in load factor to approx. 83.8%; and a 4.3% increase in yield.

However, the carrier also recorded an increase of 15% in operating expenses, for which it blamed on higher fuel prices, expansion and having to give a pay rise to staff so they could earn the minimum wage. The carrier posted a pre-tax loss of USD 57 million.

El Al is facing an uncertain future as weak exchange rates, increased competition from low-cost type carriers and higher fuel prices start to bite into earnings. As a result, the airline is putting into place a business efficiency plan across the company, which will focus on reducing expenses and increasing revenues.

Taiwan slowly being erased from the global scene..... how airlines are caving in to China's orders

China is succeeding in obliterating Taiwan from the face of the earth... at least in the terms of airline computer reservation systems.  

Many airlines around the world have crumbled and caved to a demand from the Chinese authorities to refer to Taiwan as part of China in all literature and websites. Nearly twenty of the worlds major airlines have completely removed Taiwan from all their websites and just refer to destinations such as Taipei as in China.

At least 16 other airlines have partly submitted to China's orders and use the phrase Taiwan - China, on their websites and booking engines. 

The sudden change comes after the Civil Aviation Administration of China sent a letter on 26th April to 36 foreign airlines ordering them to explicitly refer to Taiwan as a part of China. There are only a couple of days left for the airlines to either fold and submit to Cina's demands or face business sanctions in China. 

The fact that so many airlines have already crumbled has been seen as a clear victory for China’s President Xi Jinping and the Communist Party’s aims of forcing foreign companies to conform to their geopolitical vision, even in operations outside of China, even if it differs from what is the general or legal global viewpoint.  

Many critics see this as just the next step in the Chinese nationalistic programme to exert economic power to change political or accepted norm, that in the case of Taiwan could see a complete military takeover. China regularly sends up its fighter jets to buzz the coast of Taiwan or Taiwanese shipping and are seeking to isolate Taiwan both financially and politically. 

EL AL Israel Airlines Continues its Renewal

More developments for Israels El Al as it strives for profits,  the airline has expanded its network with routes to North America, including the launch of a nonstop flight between Tel Aviv and San Francisco. The flights are scheduled to operate 3 times weekly on the new Boeing 787 aircraft and will start during the last few months of 2018.

In an effort to increase the dwindling passenger loads on El Al's European routes the carrier is introducing new routes and a new fare structure. There are 3 different family branded fares: Classic, Flex, Lite and new destinations include Larnaca, Kiev, Budapest, Prague and Berlin.  

EL AL's 737-800 aircraft flying to Europe will offer a new, gradually implemented, seating configuration; Economy Class seats will be replaced by new, comfortable slim seats, Business Class seats will also be replaced and a USB socket will be installed in each seat (in all classes of service). In addition, EL AL's 737 aircraft will introduce a gradually implemented innovative Internet service onboard that will enable passengers to enjoy wifi during the flight.  It's estimated that the entire fleet will be reconfigured by the end of 2019. 

Profits slump for El Al

El Al Israel Airlines announced today its third quarter of 2017 results which show a good performance but a dramatic fall in profits.

The Company's revenues in the first nine months of 2017 amounted to approx. USD$ 1,585 million which compares favourably to USD$ 1,578 million in the first nine months of last year, but profits have taken a nose dive. Operating profit in the first nine months of 2017 amounted to approx. USD 62 million, compared to profit before tax of approx. USD$ 118 million in the first nine months of last year;

Profit before tax in the first nine months of 2017 amounted to approx. USD 47 million, compared to profit before tax of approx. USD 106 million in the first nine months of last year;

Net profit in the first nine months of 2017 amounted to approx. USD 35 million, compared to a profit of approx. USD 83 million in the first nine months of last year;

First Dreamliner arrives for EL AL

Plane maker Boeing, EL AL Israel Airlines and Air Lease Corporation are celebrating the delivery of the carrier's first Boeing 787 Dreamliner today.

The 787-9 touched down in Tel Aviv today following a nonstop, 6,746 mile (10,856 km.) delivery flight from Paine Field, adjacent to Boeing's factory in Everett, Wash.

"The arrival of the first Boeing 787 Dreamliner is a day of pride and joy to all of us at EL AL," said EL AL Chief Executive Officer David Maimon. "It is the highlight in the ongoing renewal of the EL AL fleet, which started a year and a half ago when we decided to order 16 Boeing 787 Dreamliners. We are happy to embark on a new journey with our first Dreamliner."

Read on for more from David Maimon and the new Dreamliner

Another Quarter of Losses for El Al

.The Israeli airline El Al reported a massive 53 percent drop in quarterly profit this week, citing higher salary and jet fuel expenditure ahead of its fleet modernization programme.

The national carrier of Israel announced on Wednesday it had earned $16.4 million, thats £12.7 million, in the second quarter of the year, down from 35 million a year earlier.

The airline says overall expenses rose by 5 percent, due mainly because of higher wages, while jet fuel costs grew by 6.2 percent.  In December the carrier signed a deal with its pilots to end a year of protests that led to flight cancellations, delays, higher costs and angry passengers. Which cost the airline dear and they have reported losses in the two previous quarters.