United to resume flights to Tel Aviv after pauses in service due to Middle East conflicts

WASHINGTON — (AP) — United Airlines confirmed Tuesday that it will resume daily flights to Tel Aviv later this month after suspending service there intermittently due to recent escalations in the Middle East conflicts.

The airline said flights from New York and Newark to Tel Aviv will restart on July 21, with a second daily flight resuming the following day. Tickets for the Tel Aviv flights became available on Tuesday.

Major U.S. airlines suspended flights in and out of Israel after the nation declared war following a massive attack by Hamas in October of 2023. There have been on-again-off-again resumptions of flights there during the past year-and-a-half as the violence there has subsided and then escalated again.

United announced in February that it was resuming the same New York/Newark service to Tel Aviv in March, only to suspended it again later in the spring after Houthi missiles landed near Tel Aviv's main airport, according to media reports.

Delta announced in early April that it had resumed its daily, non-stop service to Tel Aviv before suspending it again after the Houthi attack. Delta re-started service weeks later, then suspended its New York-Tel Aviv service again in June after Israel and the U.S. launched strikes on Iran. Delta said at the time that the latest pause would last until Aug. 31.

United says it has flown to Tel Aviv more than any other U.S. carrier this year while following “a detailed assessment of operational considerations in the region” and consulting with the unions representing its flight attendants and pilots.

United also offers connections to Tel Aviv through partners including Lufthansa.