Updated, Jan 30, 23:27 IST
Numerous people are finding themselves stranded in Israel, as flights to and from Israel continue to be grounded, due to the strict lockdown.
The government has announced that special flights will leave Israel to Frankfurt, Germany, with the belief that travelers to other locations will be able to travel onward from there. However, as flights from Germany are extremely limited, this is not an ideal option for most US-bound travelers. UPDATE Sat Night: At present, flights to/from Frankfurt are suspended until it becomes clear if the lockdown will be extended. This will be decided at Sunday’s cabinet meeting.
If the lockdown is not extended, regularly scheduled flights will resume on Monday. If it is extended, there presumably will be emergency flights at least to Frankfurt, and possibly to other destinations.
Chaim V’Chessed, along with the outstanding Amudim organization, was involved in arrangements for an emergency flight which departed to JFK airport last night. We are now exploring the possibility of emergency flights to the USA at the beginning of next week (approximately Jan. 31).
UPDATE: We can now report that United Airlines will have flights from Israel to the United States on Saturday and Sunday nights, January 30-31. Delta Airlines will operate a flight on Monday night. Reservations may be placed via travel agents or online.
Bear in mind that, officially, travel from Israel at this time is restricted. If traveling for a funeral, medical procedure, a legal proceeding or to return to one’s home, one must fill out this affidavit. If traveling for any other reason, one must obtain special permission, via this application. We can share that until this time, there has not been enforcement of this requirement.
Also, remember that all passengers entering the USA (over the age of 2) must present negative Covid tests, see here.
Flights from the USA to Israel: As of now, the lockdown is scheduled to end on Jan 31, but the government is debating extending it. If it ends, presumably flights will resume. In the event that the lockdown is extended, it is likely that there will be emergency flights scheduled from the USA to Israel, similar to the flights being operated from Frankfurt to Israel.
