While airlines across the globe received truly massive bailouts with few strings attached, the Israeli government hasn’t offered that kind of assistance to their flag carrier.
The government hoped that El Al would be able to get a $300 million loan, the bulk of which would be used to pay back passengers with cancelled tickets that have yet to be refunded. However despite the government offering an 82.5% guarantee of the loan, Israeli banks wanted a usurious interest rate that the government wouldn’t agree to.
Instead, Israel will prepay for $210 million of flight tickets good for the next 20 years to cover airline security personnel that is paid for by the state.
A similar deal will be offered to Israeli carriers Israir and Arkia.
In order to complete the deal, El Al will raise another $105 million in capital, with controlling shareholder Eli Rozenberg investing at least $43 million in a 3rd round of funding that will bring his total funding to over $200 million. The 27 year old yeshiva student halted El Al subsidiary Sun D’or from offering flight on Shabbos and hopes to transform the carrier’s subpar reputation.
El Al will also shrink their workforce by a third in order to achieve further cost savings and become a more efficient airline.
Hopefully people with outstanding cancelled tickets will get their refunds soon!
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28 Comments On "Israeli Government Will Prepay For $210 Million Of El Al Tickets!"
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Just got my refund this week for an October flight (after DOT complaints).
MT 🙂
Every time you mention ElAl you find the need to mention the age of Eli. Strange obsession.
Are there other 27 year olds that own an airline?
I think it’s awesome 😀
There might be real estate holdings that some parents put in their kids name, same here. It is common knowledge that the kid was standing in for his father till the Father got citizenship.
That’s neither here nor there. It’s still cool!
Who says he really is 27? Multiple reports of him not being that age.
lol
He was born into the money, not self made!
Does that make it less cool? He owns an airline! 😀
A communist government
AT least jews in israel are getting free European level health care and free public education from kinder garden till phd, Not something I can say about the us. That is very classic of american Jews to be condescending towards israel, I have learned this by living amoingst you for 20 years. I know what you say when the isralies leave the room. Lets talk when the next antisemitic takes power. You will all be running to other countries like flies, israel will be one of those places. I also know this wont be posted so who cares anyway.
Israel’s universal health plan covers next to nothing. Every person who can carries extra medical insurance which is offered directly by the HMOs (Kupat Cholim). But I agree – it IS European level healthcare. I.e. long wait times for appointments, multiple layers of insipid and bloated bureaucracy, enough red tape to decorate every Sukkah in the world, and so on.
I was an Israeli Yeshiva student at the time the country switched to universal healthcare. My monthly payments jumped about 600% and my coverage “basket” was slashed drastically. Having survived a major accident and undergoing complex orthopedic surgery, I had to repeatedly battle obtuseness and red tape to continue to be treated by the doctor who saved my leg (and life), because the hospital did not belong to the Kupat Cholim I was registered to – this, despite repeated claims that no referrals would ever be needed again…
Socialized ANYTHING is bad. Period. Socialism is a failed experiment. It has been proven a failure time and time again. Yet those who believe in it keep trying the same experiment over and over, aided by those who would love nothing more than to have everything handed to them on a silver platter without working for it or earning it.
You mean Avigdor Leiberman Or Yair Lapid?
it includes the entire Israeli Knesset! it’s as socialist as it gets. it’s just that some Knesset members are just better at playing the game!
I’m a student in Israel for a couple of years already. I’ve been there before the pandemic and during the pandemic. on the surface it seems to be very democratic. not until the pandemic did it become so clear how undemocratic this country really is. the govt took full control over it’s citizens making harsh lock-downs, and at the same time taking the opportunity to target the Chareidy community.
If that isn’t enough the Israeli Govt imposed an addition lock-down preceding to a 3rd one, which ended in a lengthy airport shutdown, no inbound and no outbound flights. it’s own citizens were stranded abroad for over a month. students were banned from returning home as flight were being canceled, with in some cases very short notice. some couldn’t make it home for their own wedding! I got canceled 4 times!
Finally the Israeli election is getting closer and all of a sudden they voted in the Knesset to fully reopen the airport for its citizens, not because of drop in Covid-19 cases, but for mere politics! and for that people are being suppressed and controlled!
it’s 100% a socialist country. the health care system is run very socialist. this is a country where you earn low wages and pay high taxes!
Health care in Israel isn’t free. Its cost is a joke in American terms. Its major distinction is that it’s there for all, and as you say, on a high level too.
I live in Israel and it’s actually one of the most anti-Semitic countries, definitely worse then America. And since when Is European health care good, are you familiar with the NHS?
Ain’t Socialism grand?
Excuse me? Said a citezin of a country who bailed out th failed bankers and car makers in 2008 and bailed everone else in 2020. If this is not socialisim I dont know what else is. So the US government can bail out Delta and other airlines cuase millions of dollars loss to the american tax payers with and you have the audacity to call this communism? shame on you. racist.
BH
I agree with you. I was being sarcastic; most of the posts here tend to be right wing, and thus outraged by what their media tell them is “socialism.” So I was subtly pointing out that our beloved Israel is, well, socialist. You know, like universal health care.
How has the DoT not fined elalcor revoked their US permit for keeping money for months that should have been returned?
no reason to get a refund…. voucher is amazing deal and fully transferrable
Cash is king.
What’s the latest Ramat Eshkol shabbos recipe?
Legend
Not sure what everyone’s going to do this year now that they can’t have their parents bring in frozen American meat wrapped in tinfoil pretending it’s cooked, w scotch tape saying
“second days roast”
First it was Biden Kimcha D’Pischa, now its El Al Kimcha D’Pischa!