Emirates Airlines said Thursday it will launch daily non-stop flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv starting December 6.
Flights will leave Tel Aviv at 6:25 p.m. and arrive in Dubai at 11:25 p.m. In Dubai, flights will depart at 2:50 p.m. and arrive at Ben-Gurion Airport at 4:25 p.m.
The state-run airline will deploy its modern Boeing 777-300ER aircraft and offer private suites in first class and lie-flat seats in business class.
The new route will join other Tel Aviv-Dubai flights operated by El Al, Israir, Arkia, Etihad and flydubai.
“With the start of services in just a few weeks, Emirates will provide more options for travelers to fly better to and from Tel Aviv via Dubai,” said Adnan Kazim, chief commercial officer of Emirates Airlines. “We also look forward to welcoming more business and leisure travelers from Israel to Dubai, and onwards to other destinations on Emirates’ network.”
The move comes as the UAE and Israel continue to develop greater economic cooperation following the signing of the Abraham Accords last year. With the new daily flights, Israeli travelers will be able to connect through Dubai to Emirates’ global route network of over 120 destinations. The new flights also introduce inbound connections to Tel Aviv from close to 30 Emirates gateways across Australia, the United States, Brazil, Mexico, India and South Africa.
Dubai is currently hosting the World Expo, which has already attracted more than 2 million visits in its first month. Expo 2020 is the third largest event in the world, following the Olympic Games and the World Cup, with 191 countries participating for six months. Israel is participating with its own country pavilion for the first time in an Arab country, with some 15 million visits expected.
Since it safely resumed tourism activity in July 2020, Dubai remains one of the world’s most popular holiday destinations, especially during the winter season, the airline noted.
In addition to passenger operations, Emirates SkyCargo will offer 20 tons of cargo capacity each way between Dubai and Tel Aviv on the Boeing 777-300ER to support exports of pharmaceuticals, hi-tech goods, vegetables and other perishables from Tel Aviv. The flights are also expected to transport manufacturing raw materials and components, semiconductors and e-commerce parcels into Israel.