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Ben Gurion Airport officially cuts to 50 passengers/flight and 1 per hour from Monday 5pm — Transport Minister Regev

2026-03-22 · 20:00 UTC·Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv

Transportation Minister Miri Regev officially announced flight restrictions at Ben Gurion Airport effective Monday (March 23) at 5pm: one departing flight per hour with a maximum of 50 passengers; one arriving flight per hour with no passenger limit. 'In order to prevent possible harm to human life,' Regev said. 'This is an inconvenience, but our commitment to human life is our top priority.' Since Ben Gurion's gradual reopening, 140,000 Israelis have returned home on repatriation flights by El Al, Arkia, Israir and Air Haifa. Restrictions may change at any time based on security assessments.

Ben Gurion International Airport faces severe operational restrictions from Monday March 23 following Iranian missile impacts across central and southern Israel over the weekend. RESTRICTIONS (Channel 12, unconfirmed officially): - Departing passengers: 50 per flight (down from 120) - Traffic: 1 takeoff + 1 landing per hour (down from 2 each) - Arriving flights: not restricted STATUS: El Al and Arkia had not received official notification as of Sunday evening. Transportation Ministry: 'contrary to reports, no change in policy.' CONTEXT: Ben Gurion is Israel's main international gateway. Restrictions at this severity would affect international supply chains, diplomatic travel, and civilian evacuation capacity. IDF has requested over 1,400 buses for military logistics. Israeli public transit already at 20-75% capacity.

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Actor responses

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Transportation Ministry: 'No change in policy announced.' El Al and Arkia: no official update received. Channel 12 report of 50-passenger cap and 1 flight/hour not yet officially confirmed as of Sunday evening.

Sources

T2Channel 12 via Times of Israel — Ben Gurion: 50 passengers/flight, 1 flight/hr from Monday75% reliability