The Israel Airports Authority issued an exceptional temporary directive to air traffic control prohibiting US refueling aircraft from landing at Ben Gurion Airport, according to reports. The order, conveyed directly from the Transport Ministry and Minister Miri Regev, comes hours after the US froze the evacuation of its refueling aircraft from the airport, amid an escalating dispute that threatens up to 50,000 flight tickets in July.
The Israel Airports Authority issued a formal temporary directive Tuesday afternoon, instructing air traffic control to deny clearance for any US refueling aircraft attempting to land at Ben Gurion Airport. The order, attributed to Transport Minister Miri Regev, comes hours after the US froze the evacuation of its refueling fleet from the airport and Regev blocked additional landings, as The Zioneer reported earlier today at 10:24. The directive effectively bars future US refueler landings while the existing fleet remains parked at the airport, with the standoff still threatening up to 50,000 flight tickets in July.
The sequence of events this morning at 10:24 unfolded rapidly: initial reports said the US had canceled the evacuation (v1), quickly corrected to a freeze (v2). By the same hour, it emerged that 33 refueling aircraft were still at Ben Gurion—four more than the 20 promised under a prior agreement—and that Regev had officially refused to authorize additional landings (v3, v4). The IAA directive now formalizes that refusal. The dispute has deeper roots: on Sun Jun 14, Regev called for the removal of US refueling aircraft, as The Zioneer reported; on Mon Jun 15, she ordered the IAA not to cancel summer flights; on Wed Jun 17, Ben Gurion warned of 500 flight cancellations due to a separate fuel-truck shortage. On Fri Jun 26, the US pledged to remove about 20 aircraft by Tuesday, but additional tankers instead landed at Ben Gurion earlier today at 13:10.
As The Zioneer has reported throughout this thread, the standoff stems from Regev’s demand that the US military aircraft—which she says disrupt civilian flight schedules—be removed from Israel’s main international airport. The Defense Ministry has been tasked with finding a solution, but no agreement has been announced. The IAA has warned that continued delays in the fleet’s evacuation could force the cancellation of tens of thousands of tickets through the end of July.
What remains unclear is the fate of the 33 refueling aircraft already parked at Ben Gurion: the new directive only blocks future landings, not the existing fleet. The Transport Ministry has not said whether those aircraft will be evacuated, and no timeline for their removal has been given.
7 developments
- StrongRegev bars further US refueling planes at Ben Gurion, orders diversion to air bases
- DevelopingUS keeps 33 refueling tankers at Ben Gurion; aviation officials warn of 50,000 summer ticket cancellations
- DevelopingAerial refueling aircraft performs emergency landing at Ben Gurion Airport
- DevelopingAdditional US refueling tankers land at Ben Gurion Airport from the Gulf
Source and signal
- Internal intake