The crisis gripping Ben Gurion International Airport took a new turn Thursday, spreading beyond overwhelmed terminals and frozen check-in counters to reach the pilots and crew members who were supposed to fly the planes.
What began with the suspension of check-in for departing flights and severe congestion throughout the terminal has now extended to the pilots and crew members themselves. A message sent to crew members stated, "Due to a strike at Ben Gurion, all crews are asked to stop and not proceed to the airport."
The risk: flight crews could wait for hours and be unable to operate their flights
The instruction was driven by more than logistics. Pilots and crew members operate under strict legal limits on the length of their duty periods and mandatory rest windows. If crews travel to Ben Gurion only to sit idle while the disruption continues, those hours of waiting count against their permitted duty time – potentially leaving them legally unable to fly once operations resume. Crews who had not yet departed for the airport were therefore told to hold and wait for further guidance.
Airport authority response: this is a workers' committee strike
The Israel Airports Authority (the government body managing Israel's airports) confirmed that the disruptions were being directed by the recognized union body at the airport. "The Israel Airports Authority is currently dealing with work disruptions, directed by the union, which are affecting operational activity and service to the traveling public," the authority said. "Management is demanding that employees immediately cease any action that disrupts normal operations and restore full routine activity." The authority added that it regards "any deliberate action that could harm the traveling public and the normal functioning of Ben Gurion – particularly during the high-volume summer period" as extremely serious. "Should the disruptions not cease, the Authority intends to urgently approach the Labor Court (Israel's specialized tribunal for employment disputes) and request its intervention. All parties at Ben Gurion are working to minimize the impact of the incident and to preserve, as much as possible, operational continuity and passenger service."
