- Business
- El Al Israel Airlines Ltd. El Al Israel Airlines Ltd. (ELAL) operates as Israel's flag carrier, providing scheduled passenger flights, cargo services, and charter operations from its base at Ben Gurion Airport near Lod; the company offers economy, premium economy, and business class seating across its all-Boeing fleet, including Boeing 737-800s and 737-900ERs for short- and medium-haul routes to Europe and the Middle East, Boeing 777-200ERs for select long-haul services, and Boeing 787 Dreamliners for transatlantic and extended-range destinations such as New York, Los Angeles, Bangkok, and Tokyo; ancillary services encompass in-flight kosher meals, maintenance for its own and third-party aircraft, security operations, catering through subsidiaries like Borenstein Caterers and Tamam, and holiday packages via Sun d'Or International Airlines Ltd., which handles leisure charters and seasonal routes. Founded in 1948 shortly after Israel's independence, El Al maintains headquarters at Ben Gurion Airport and serves nearly 50 destinations across Europe, North America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, targeting leisure, business, and diaspora travelers with codeshare partnerships including Delta Air Lines, Air France, KLM, Iberia, and TAROM. In recent developments, the airline finalized a major order in August 2024 for up to 31 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft with deliveries starting in 2028 to renew its narrowbody fleet, added a 17th Boeing 787-9 in 2025 with two more slated for late 2025 or early 2026 plus options for three additional units in 2029-2030, signed a strategic partnership with Romania's TAROM in March 2025 to enhance connectivity, and posted record 2024 profits of $545 million amid competitor pullbacks during regional tensions while launching new routes like Tokyo-Narita in 2023.