Israel's El Al posts record $203M Q3 profit as foreign airlines trickle back
Many international airlines have now resumed flights to Israel following a truce to end the Gaza war.
Israel’s El Al Airlines reported record third-quarter profits on Tuesday, benefiting from the absence of foreign airlines at Ben Gurion Airport after June’s conflict with Iran and during the Gaza war.
What happened: The Israeli airline reported a net profit of $203 million between July and the end of September, 8% higher than the $187 million in the corresponding quarter of 2024 and a new record.
The strong results come as some foreign airlines gradually reentered the Israeli market in the third quarter, following the cessation of a 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran in June. They included US carrier United Airlines and Europe’s Air Baltic, Air France-KLM, Aegean Airlines, Lufthansa Group and Wizz Air.
However, many airlines — including Air Canada, Dutch carrier Transavia, British Airways, Spain's Iberia, Swiss, Germany's Eurowings and Scandinavian carrier SAS — returned only in the fourth quarter. Many returned after the Oct. 10 ceasefire agreement that ended the two-year Gaza war.
