History made by Air India as it lands In Israel using Saudi Airspace

• BY India News Newsdesk
• April 4, 2018
• 0 COMMENTS

Air India’s maiden flight to Israel has landed in Tel Aviv, reducing the travel time substantially after Saudi Arabia for the first time allowed a commercial flight to use its airspace, indicating a thaw in relations between the Arab kingdom and the Jewish state. 

Saudi Arabia permitted the airline to use its airspace, enabling it to take a shorter route, covering the distance in 7.25 hours, about 2.10 hours less as compared to the only other airline that flies between the two countries — Israel’s national carrier El Al.

Flight AI 139 landed at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport at 2215 PM (Israeli time) yesterday, heralding a new chapter in the India-Israel ties and ending a decades-old overfly ban by Saudi Arabia.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Israel considers the new route important, noting that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu raised the matter of the route with his counterpart Narendra Modi when the two met in July in Israel and then in January in India, Haaretz newspaper reported.

The ministry said the route would also lower fares and boost investment and tourism from India to Israel. Saudi Arabia’s decision to permit Air India to use its airspace has enabled the airline to take a shorter route. Many Arab and Islamic nations do not recognise Israel and, therefore, disallow airlines from using their airspace for flight services to that country.

Terming as “historic” the moment of arrival of the national carrier’s maiden flight to Tel Aviv, Indian Ambassador to Israel Pavan Kapoor said a lot of efforts had gone into it over the last two years with a strong vision and support for the initiative from the prime ministers of both the countries.

He said the initiative would strengthen the relationship between the two countries in various spheres, including political, trade and cultural.

Air India Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Pradeep Kharola said the Air India direct flight has the shortest route connecting New Delhi and Tel Aviv and will bring people of the two countries closer.