Israel's Transportation Minister Miri Regev is demanding the United States immediately remove 13 refueling planes from Ben Gurion Airport, saying Washington violated an agreed cap on how many aircraft it would keep parked there, according to Israel Hayom.
More than 30 US refueling planes are currently parked at the airport, occupying spots meant for civilian aircraft. Regev's office says the original understanding with the Americans capped the number at 20, and that the excess amounts to a breach of that agreement with Israel's Defense Ministry. Her instruction is direct: bring the number down to 20 by removing 13 planes immediately. "Ben Gurion is not a military airfield," Regev said. "They can park at Israeli Air Force bases."
The crisis had appeared resolved as recently as two and a half weeks ago, when the Transportation Ministry announced it had reached an understanding with the US military to gradually relocate the tankers to Israeli Air Force bases around the country, lifting the threat to hundreds of thousands of summer flight tickets. But the renewed escalation with Iran froze that process. Eighteen planes that were supposed to leave during the second half of July stayed in place, and four more landed overnight, according to Ynet, bringing the current total above 30.
Aviation industry sources told Ynet that this reversal reflects a standing contingency arrangement agreed in advance between Israel and the US: in the event of renewed fighting, American refueling planes are to receive immediate clearance to return and park at Ben Gurion. That is, according to these sources, exactly what is now happening in practice, rather than a new or unplanned development.
Israel Airports Authority CEO Sharon Kadmi sent an urgent letter Tuesday morning to the transportation minister and other officials warning that the parking shortage could force the authority to instruct airlines to scale back operations as early as the start of August if the removal plan isn't restarted soon. Kadmi's letter also flagged that the crunch will collide directly with peak summer demand, with Ben Gurion expected to handle roughly 90,000 passengers this Thursday alone, a figure expected to be exceeded in August.
Separately, and in the same wave of decisions tied to the Iran escalation, the Shin Bet has extended the ban on Israeli airlines, El Al, Arkia, and Israir, from flying to the United Arab Emirates through the end of October 2026. The restriction applies only to Israeli carriers; foreign airlines Etihad and Flydubai continue operating their UAE routes as normal. Passengers who purchased UAE tickets through Israeli airlines before February 28 will have those tickets canceled and refunded.
