Ryanair announced today, Tuesday, September 30, that it will not restart low-cost flights to and from Tel Aviv for the winter season, thus losing 1 million seats and 22 routes.
The airline’s decision is due to the refusal of Ben Gurion Airport to confirm Ryanair’s historic slots for the summer of 2026, but also to the failure to ensure that Terminal 1 – which serves low-cost companies – will remain open in the event of future safety issues.
Ryanair complained that its flights were affected three times this summer, when the airport chose to close Terminal 1 and transfer routes to Terminal 3, sharply increasing operating costs and making low-cost seats that had already been sold unprofitable.
In a statement, the company expressed its dissatisfaction:
“It is absurd that the airport refuses to confirm the summer 2026 slots, while sales have already started. We cannot continue to operate loss-making routes in the winter without any assurance for the summer.”
Ryanair has made it clear that it is not opposed to a temporary move to Terminal 3 for safety reasons, but requires flights to be priced at the lower Terminal 1 fees, as stipulated in the agreement.
With this decision, Tel Aviv loses – for the time being – access to Ryanair’s network of 22 routes and the lowest fares in the market. However, the company left open the possibility of returning, provided that the airport confirms the slots and availability of Terminal 1.
