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After a 12-year hiatus, Delta Air Lines Inc. restarted nonstop flights from Atlanta to Tel Aviv in 2023, only to have to back out of Israel altogether after the outbreak of war in the wake of Oct. 7.
Last week, as news of a ceasefire broke in the year-and-a-half-long Gaza conflict, the airline said it would restart service April 1 to Tel Aviv from its longtime gateway at New York-JFK.
That opens the door for future restorations of service, but the airline was non-committal on whether or not that would eventually include Atlanta.
“New York is a key market for travel to Tel Aviv, and we are confident customers will appreciate the return of this service. We will continue to monitor all markets and evaluate future opportunities based on demand,” a Delta spokesperson told Global Atlanta in an emailed statement.
The New York flight still offers one-stop access to Israel’s commercial hub for Atlantans, but stops short of the nonstop link that businesspeople spent years lobbying for.
Atlanta maintains strong ties to Israel; a few months before the attacks and ensuing conflict, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp led a delegation to the country, meeting with investors and government officials.
Momentum on the business front, meanwhile, has slowed amid the uncertain political and economic environment. Conexx, the main business organization linking the Southeast U.S. to Israel, has announced plans to morph into a new agency or shutter operations, ending a period of quasi-dormancy.
The Consulate General of Israel to the Southeast, meanwhile, continues to promote Israel’s innovative startups, showcasing five companies in the medtech space during an event in Peachtree Corners last Thursday and planning for future delegations to the region.
Drive TLV, an incubator for smart mobility startups that has partnered with Cox Automotive and Novelis in Atlanta, is set to bring another group of companies to the city in February.
The Tel Aviv service on Delta complements a codeshare with EL AL Israel Airlines, which allows Delta customers to book flights on the Israeli carrier through cities like Miami, Los Angeles, Boston and more.
More on the return of the flight in 2023:
Oct. 11, 2023: