A proposed new three times weekly El Al Israel Airlines flight between its Ben Gurion International Airport base in Tel Aviv and Logan International Airport in Boston will be proposed to the company’s board of directors at its next sitting in the coming weeks. The planned service, for launch from June 2015 will help support the growing business connections between the two cities.
Boston is currently the fourth largest US - Tel Aviv origin-destination market without non-stop service behind San Francisco, Chicago and Miami and averages an estimated 91 passengers a day in each direction, generating more than $45 million in ticket sales last year alone. The route has always enjoyed a high proportion of business travellers and there are more than 200 companies and organisations in Massachusetts and New England which travel extensively to and from Israel.
“Non-stop service to Tel Aviv will open up new commercial and economic opportunities for Massachusetts and the region,” said Boston’s Governor Deval Patrick. “This and similar service expansions are how we bolster the Commonwealth’s competitiveness.”
El Al plans to serve the route using a Boeing 767-300ER configured with 218 seats, including 22 business class seats, subject to the green light from its Board of Directors. “I took the decision to launch the Boston route by the end of June 2015 with the trust and confidence that El Al will get all the support from the Boston community choosing to fly with El Al,” said David Maimon, president and chief executive officer, El Al Israel Airlines.
El Al currently flies to four destinations in North America - New York’s JFK, Newark, Los Angeles and Toronto and its selection of Boston for its next US route is a major endorsement of the work of The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport), which owns and operates Boston Logan International Airport, and its partnership with elected officials and businesses to convince that Boston will support the new service.
With the support of Governor Patrick, business, research and academic communities, Massport has secured new routes to Tokyo, Panama, Dubai, Istanbul and Beijing in the last 30 months. “Non-stop international flights to and from Logan stimulate our economy and our region,” said Thomas P Glynn, chief executive officer, Massport. “This new service helps open new doors and new possibilities. Logan is truly New England’s gateway to the world.’’
The Boston-Tel Aviv market has grown 16 per cent in the last three years and Massachusetts and Israel share strong ties in the high tech, life sciences, biotech, finance, clean energy and cybersecurity industries. Massachusetts’ higher education and medical institutions also bring people into the state from around the world.
“Direct flights pave the way for further strengthening of Israel- US ties, both economically and culturally,” said Israel’s Consul General Yehuda Yaakov. “We look forward to seeing even more of our New England friends exploring firsthand our diverse society and rich history.”
In our analysis, below, we look at annual O&D passenger demand between Massachusetts and Israel. The data clearly shows a stable market with a strong annual demand of around 55.000 bi-directional passengers a year. El Al already has knowledge of the dynamics of the market through connecting traffic via its existing US routes, although its share of demand has slipped from 14.8 per cent to 9.8 per cent over the past ten years. United Airlines is currently the dominant carrier in this market with a 18.2 per cent share in 2013, followed by British Airways (12.2 per cent), Delta Air Lines (12.1 per cent) and US Airways (9.8 per cent).
Data provided by 
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