Israel airline faces stiff competition with Turks

TEL AVIV - Reuters

Chief of the company said the airline faced more competition in the quarter.

El Al Israel Airlines posted a 54 percent rise in third-quarter net profit, boosted by higher revenue and by efficiency measures as the company continued to cut its workforce.

Net profit at Israel’s flag carrier rose to a record $57.9 million from $37.5 million a year earlier, El Al said today. Chief Executive Elyezer Shkedy said the airline faced increased competition in the quarter as foreign airlines increased the number of seats offered by 14 percent.

“The main change was due to the dramatic increase in the activity of Turkish airlines to and from Israel, which amounts to an incomprehensible support of the Israeli government in the international expansion of Turkish carriers at the expense of Israeli airlines, which are prevented from flying to Turkey,” Shkedy said.

He said the Turkish carriers have rights to operate 126 flight segments a week, compared with none for Israeli carriers to Turkey and called on the Israeli government to act to enable Israeli airlines to compete fairly.