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10 A factory-fresh El Al Boeing 787 seen in Boeing Field . El Al expects to complete the pending deliveries of its 787s between 2029 and 2030 . // DANIEL GORUN · BFI
11 A view of Ben Gurion Airport ’ s arrivals hall . // DAVID SHANKBONE
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2028 and 2030 , and it aims to expand its Boeing 787 fleet from 16 to 22 between 2028 and 2030 . In the coming months , it is anticipated that El Al will order up to 30 narrow-body jets ; it is negotiating with Boeing and Airbus for that order .
As for long-haul flights , this summer , the airline is due to receive a 787-9 initially intended for Air China . In 2026 , El Al will receive three more of the type . After that , it expects to take delivery of three additional 787-9s between 2029 and 2030 . Besides these , El Al has options on six more , for a potential fleet of 28 Dreamliners .
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El Al says that consumer behavior has changed since October . More travelers are booking flights last minute instead of months in advance . In its 2023 financials , the airline highlighted that , despite the ongoing war , its average load factors have increased from 84 % in the fourth quarter of 2023 to an estimated 93 % in the first quarter of 2024 .
Those added sales have almost exclusively come from immediate travel during the war . In comparison , before the war , over 40 % of tickets were advance sales . The airline has already adjusted its flight
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schedule for the upcoming summer season ; this includes suspending flights to less relevant destinations and focusing on destinations with greater demand . As such , this summer , El Al will operate nine more weekly frequencies to North America and 22 to Europe than it did in the summer of 2023 .
FOREIGN AIRLINES RETURNING
With the passing of time , foreign airlines have begun to return to Israel , albeit hesitantly . The first announcement , which was made in mid-December
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