Israel Relocates US Refueling Aircraft From Ben-Gurion to Prevent 2.4 Million Ticket Cancellations

Israel is preparing to relocate about half of the US refueling aircraft stationed at Ben-Gurion Airport to Israel Air Force bases to reduce the risk of flight disruptions during the summer travel season, with the operation managed by National Security Council Director Shmuel Ben-Ezra.

“Israel is moving to relocate about half of the American refueling aircraft stationed at Ben Gurion Airport to Air Force bases, in a belated bid to avert the cancellation of more than 2”

Al-Jazeera Net

The Israel Airports Authority said Ben-Gurion Airport was operating at one-third of its capacity because 70% of activities at the airport are restricted due to the space and resources occupied by American military operations, and Sharon Kedmi warned, "We are only utilizing one-third of the airport's operational capacity."

Al-Jazeera Net

Kedmi said the authority has suffered a loss of 700 million shekels (approximately $248 million) in the past two months, and he warned the figure could escalate to billions if the situation continues.

The Times of Israel reported that Transport Minister Miri Regev warned that unless many of the US aircraft parked at Ben Gurion are relocated immediately, some 2.4 million plane tickets scheduled for the peak summer months and holiday season could be canceled.

Regev’s letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set a June 16 deadline, when airlines are expected to be informed by the Israel Airports Authority that they need to prepare to cancel some flights scheduled for the summer peak season starting on July 1 and potentially the High Holidays season in September and October.

Transport Minister Miri Regev warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that failure to resolve the aircraft parking shortage at Ben Gurion could lead to the cancellation of more than 2.4 million airline tickets for the summer and the fall holiday season, ahead of a Tuesday, June 16 deadline set by the Airports Authority.

Regev wrote that "approximately 72 of the partner’s refueling planes are parked at Ben Gurion Airport and occupy more than half of the parking capacity," while "approximately 26 additional planes are parked at Ramon Airport, occupying approximately 90% of the parking spaces at the airport."

JNS.org

Regev also warned that "If half of the refuelers are not evacuated by Tuesday (June 16, 26), we will notify over 2 million citizens" whose flights during the summer, including the Breslov Hasidim trip to Uman on Rosh Hashanah, are canceled.

The Israel Airports Authority CEO Sharon Kedmi told Ynet that if no solution is found in time, "every fourth passenger will receive a cancellation notice," and he said the authority must prepare for airlines to be forced to cancel some scheduled flights.

Israeli airspace fully reopened following a ceasefire that ended a period of escalation earlier in 2026, but the dispute over US refueling aircraft has continued to delay a full return to normal commercial flight operations at Israel’s main international gateway.

The dispute is framed as a logistics and readiness problem tied to the war with Iran, which began on February 28 and left Ben Gurion Airport effectively congested with American refueling aircraft, according to Al-Jazeera Net.

“Israel-Iran war: 24 hours after the American bombardments on the Fordo nuclear site, the Israeli army strikes the same target again”

L'Indépendant

Al-Jazeera Net reported that the crisis centers on parking stands and that El Al and Israir have had to park their aircraft at airports in Europe, Cyprus, and Greece due to a lack of space.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Ben-Gurion Airport was reportedly ready to facilitate an emergency evacuation of the US aircraft within 72 hours to nearby bases in Europe if a US-Iran agreement to end the war is signed, and that the aircraft would be placed on high alert at Ben-Gurion Airport if the conflict escalates.

Regev warned that a continued impasse would cause "direct economic damage of billions of shekels to airlines, the tourism industry, and the economy," and she said mass cancellation of flights would harm national morale and civic resilience.

The Times of Israel added that Regev warned the situation could "severely damage Israel’s credibility as an aviation destination" and may put off airlines that have only recently returned to flying to Israel following the April ceasefire [with Iran].