Israel has reportedly held discussions with Dubai-based mega airline Emirates over a proposal that the carrier be given special permission to launch flights from Tel Aviv to New York and Bangkok.
This isn’t an idea that Emirates devised or is even necessarily interested in pursuing, but rather a special package that Israel’s Ministry of Transportation came up with to lure the airline back to Tel Aviv.
Emirates hasn’t served Tel Aviv since October 2023, when the Hamas terror atrocities in Israel led every major international airline to suspend operations to the country.
But while other UAE-based airlines like Etihad Airways and Emirates’ sister carrier FlyDubai have resumed flights to Tel Aviv, Emirates is still nowhere to be seen.
The reason for Emirates’ disappearance from the Israeli aviation market is especially odd, given how successful its flights to Dubai proved in such a short period of time.
Emirates only launched flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv on June 23, 2022, following the historic normalization of diplomatic relations between the UAE and Israel. But less than a year later, Emirates was already operating up to three daily flights.
According to the local news channel, N12, Israeli officials met with senior figures at Emirates with a unique proposal (at least in Israel) in a bid to get Emirates to restore operations: Emirates would be granted permission to not only fly between Dubai and Tel Aviv, but also add flights from Tel Aviv to New York and Bangkok.
In the aviation industry, there are very strict rules that govern how international airlines establish operations in a foreign country, which are sometimes known as the ‘freedoms of the sky.’
There are nine established ‘freedoms of the sky,’ and one of the more interesting ones is Fifth Freedom rights, in which an international airline can fly from its home hub to another country via a third airport where it is allowed to drop off and pick up more passengers.
For example, Emirates already operates several Fifth Freedom flights, such as its daily service from Dubai to Newark, which routes via Athens, Greece. Emirates is permitted to take bookings solely on the Athens to Newark leg, and vice versa, which makes this a Fifth Freedom flight.
What Israel is proposing, however, is slightly different. They have suggested that Emirates be given permission to operate Seventh Freedom flights in which the initial leg of the flight doesn’t need to start from the carrier’s home hub.
In other words, Emirates would operate flights from Tel Aviv to New York and Bangkok as standalone legs. To do so, Emirates would likely have to base aircraft out of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport and potentially even have locally hired pilots and cabin crew just to operate these flights.
In the past, the Israeli government has been seen as very protective of its own airlines, although it’s not hard to see why officials are eager to improve the competitive landscape.
Since October 2023, national flag carrier El Al has pretty much held a monopoly on long-haul international flights, as most foreign competitors steered clear of Israel for long periods of time.
Earlier this year, El Al was slapped with a record US $39 million fine by competition authorities for alleged price gouging during the Gaza War, with air fares rising by 16% on average, but in some cases, spiking by as much as 31% during the Gaza War.
Whether this proposal tracks with Emirates’ business objectives, however, is a totally different question.
Emirates is definitely no stranger to operating Fifth Freedom flights, and it does so with great success. But the airline controls everything through its hub in Dubai. The idea of Emirates signing up to operate Seventh Freedom flights from Tel Aviv is a stretch to say the least.
There’s certainly an argument for Emirates adding Fifth Freedom flights from Tel Aviv, but it’s worth noting that Emirates would not only need the Israeli government to change its own laws, but also gain permission from regulators in the United States.
Expect serious opposition from both Israeli and US-based airlines should this proposal actually move forward to concrete plans.
There is, however, one other factor to consider in whether Emirates will take up Israel’s offer: Does this align with the UAE’s diplomatic strategy? Emirates is a hugely successful airline, but it is still owned by the government of Dubai, which has an influence over its operations.
