Ben Gurion International Airport, ; ar, مطار بن غوريون الدولي , commonly known by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the main international airport of
Israel. Situated on the northern outskirts of the city of
Lod
Lod ( he, לוד, or fully vocalized ; ar, اللد, al-Lidd or ), also known as Lydda ( grc, Λύδδα), is a city southeast of Tel Aviv and northwest of Jerusalem in the Central District of Israel. It is situated between the lower Shephe ...
, it is the busiest airport in the country. It is located to the northwest of
Jerusalem and to the southeast of
Tel Aviv.
Until 1973, it was known as Lod Airport, whereafter it was renamed in honour of
David Ben-Gurion, the first Israeli prime minister. The airport serves as a hub for
El Al,
Israir Airlines,
Arkia
Arkia, legally incorporated as Arkia Israeli Airlines Ltd ( he, ארקיע, ''I will soar'', ar, خطوط أركيا), is an Israeli airline. Its head office is on the grounds of Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel. It is Israel's second-largest ...
, and
Sun d'Or
Sun d'Or ( he, סאן דור, also styled as Sund'or) is an Israeli airline brand and former airline with its base at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of El Al which uses the brand mainly for seasonal scheduled and ...
, and is managed by the
Israel Airports Authority.
In 2019, Ben Gurion Airport handled 24.8 million passengers.
It is considered to be among the five best airports in the
Middle East due to its passenger experience and its high level of security; while it has been the target of several terrorist attacks, no attempt to hijack a plane departing from Ben Gurion Airport has ever succeeded.
The airport holds extreme strategic importance to Israel as it is one of the few convenient entry points into the country for most travellers.
As Ben Gurion Airport once held standalone significance, it was regarded as a
single point of failure, which led to the opening of
Ramon Airport
Ramon Airport ( he, נמל התעופה רמון, Arabic: مطار رامون) , named after Ilan and Asaf Ramon and unofficially also known as Eilat-Ramon Airport, is an international airport located in the Timna Valley in southern Israel. Ram ...
in 2019.
History
British Mandate period (1934–1948)
The airport began during the
British Mandate for Palestine
The Mandate for Palestine was a League of Nations mandate for British administration of the territories of Palestine and Transjordan, both of which had been conceded by the Ottoman Empire following the end of World War I in 1918. The manda ...
as an airstrip of two unpaved runways on the outskirts of the town of Lydda (now
Lod
Lod ( he, לוד, or fully vocalized ; ar, اللد, al-Lidd or ), also known as Lydda ( grc, Λύδδα), is a city southeast of Tel Aviv and northwest of Jerusalem in the Central District of Israel. It is situated between the lower Shephe ...
), near the
Templer
Templer is an English surname, and may refer to:
*Bernhard Templer (1865–1935), Austrian Jewish theologian
*Cherie Templer (1856–1915), New Zealand painter
*George Templer (1781–1843), builder of the Haytor Granite Tramway, Devon, England
* ...
colony of
Wilhelma
)
, native_name_lang = deu / ger
, logo = Wilhelma Zoo Logo.png
, logo_size =
, logo_alt = Logo of Wilhelma Zoo and Botanical Garden
, logo_caption = Logo of Wilhelma Zoo and Botanical Garden
, image ...
. It was built in 1934, largely at the urging of
Airwork Services
Airwork Limited, also referred to during its history as Airwork Services Limited, is a wholly owned subsidiary company of VT Group plc. It has a long and rich history in providing a variety of defence support services to the Royal Air Force (RAF ...
.
The first passenger service at the new airport was the
Misr Airwork Misr or MISR may refer to:
* Misr, the romanized Arabic name for Egypt
* misr, singular of Arabic ''amsar'', which were early Arabic "garrison towns"
* Misr (domain name), a top-level Internet domain name
* Misr, a variant of the AKM assault rifle ...
route
Cairo—Lydda—
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaor ...
, inaugurated on 3 August 1935. Subsequently, Misr flew via Lydda to
Haifa and
Baghdad. The first continental European airline with a regular service to Lydda was
LOT Polish Airlines
LOT Polish Airlines, legally incorporated as Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT S.A. (, ''flight''), is the flag carrier of Poland. Established in 1928, LOT was a founding member of IATA and remains one of the world's oldest airlines in operation. Wit ...
since 4 April 1937. By that time, Lydda Airport boasted four fully operational concrete runways. Holland's
KLM
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...
, which had since 1933 stopped at
Gaza
Gaza may refer to:
Places Palestine
* Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea
** Gaza City, a city in the Gaza Strip
** Gaza Governorate, a governorate in the Gaza Strip Lebanon
* Ghazzeh, a village in ...
en route to
Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now
Jakarta
Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
, Indonesia), moved the service to Lydda in 1937.
Imperial Airways, too, used Lydda as a refueling stop en route to India.
During
World War II, Imperial Airways and later
British Overseas Airways Corporation continued the service to Lydda until the
fall of France
The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...
in June 1940. When the Japanese military advanced into
Burma and
Malaya
Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia:
Political entities
* British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...
in February 1942, KLM curtailed its route to Batavia and made Lydda the eastern terminus of the route. Misr Airwork, which had suspended flights upon the British declaration of war, resumed the weekly Cairo—Lydda—Nicosia service in May 1940.
In 1943, the airport was renamed "
RAF Station Lydda
Lod Air Force Base, also Air Force Base 27, was an Israeli Air Force airfield that was part of the Ben Gurion International Airport, located approximately north of Lod; east-southeast of Tel Aviv.
From 1938 to 1948 it was known as RAF Station ...
" and continued to serve as a major airfield for military air transport and aircraft ferry operations between military bases in
Europe,
Africa, the
Middle East (mainly
Iraq and
Persia) and South/
Southeast Asia. In 1944, as the German threat in the Middle East subsided,
Aviron Aviation Company ''Aviron'' Palestine Aviation Company was established in April, 1936 in Mandatory Palestine (now Israel). The company was intended to train pilots and then operate a mainly internal airline, which would serve the security needs of the Yishuv, the Je ...
initiated service four times a week between Lydda and Haifa.
The first civilian transatlantic route,
New York City to Lydda Airport, was inaugurated by
TWA
Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with ...
in 1946. The British gave up the airport at the end of April 1948.
Israel's first decades (1948–1973)
Soldiers of the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...
captured the airport on 10 July 1948, in
Operation Danny, transferring control to the newly
declared State of Israel. In 1948 the Israelis changed the official name of the airport from Lydda to Lod (the nearby town's name in Hebrew), the airport's name becoming Lod Airport.
Flights resumed on 24 November 1948. That year, 40,000 passengers passed through the terminal. By 1952, the number had risen to 100,000 a month. Within a decade, air traffic increased to the point where local flights had to be redirected to Tel Aviv's other airport, the
Sde Dov
Sde Dov Airport ( he, שדה דב, ''lit.'' Dov Field, ar, مطار سدي دوف), also known as Dov Hoz Airport ( he, נמל התעופה דב הוז, ''Nemal HaTe'ufa Dov Hoz'', ar, مطار دوف هوز) was an airport in Tel Aviv, Israe ...
airfield (SDV) on the city's northern coast. By the mid-1960s, 14 international airlines were landing at the airport.
The airport's name was changed from Lod to Ben Gurion International Airport in 1973 to honour Israel's first Prime Minister,
David Ben-Gurion, who died that year.
Terrorist incidents (1972)
While Ben Gurion Airport has been a target of Palestinian attacks, the adoption of
strict security precautions has ensured that no aircraft departing from Ben Gurion airport has ever been
hijacked
Hijacking may refer to:
Common usage
Computing and technology
* Bluejacking, the unsolicited transmission of data via Bluetooth
* Brandjacking, the unauthorized use of a company's brand
* Browser hijacking
* Clickjacking (including ''like ...
. On the other hand, airliners hijacked from other countries have landed at Ben Gurion, contributing to two major incidents in the airport's history.
In the first incident, on 8 May 1972, four Palestinian
Black September
Black September ( ar, أيلول الأسود; ''Aylūl Al-Aswad''), also known as the Jordanian Civil War, was a conflict fought in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan between the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF), under the leadership of King Hussein ...
terrorists
hijacked a Sabena flight en route from Vienna and forced it to land at Ben Gurion airport.
Sayeret Matkal commandos, including
Benjamin Netanyahu, led by
Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak ( he-a, אֵהוּד בָּרָק, Ehud_barak.ogg, link=yes, born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli general and politician who served as the tenth prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until Jan ...
(both future Israeli Prime Ministers) stormed the plane, killing two of the hijackers and capturing the other two. One passenger was killed.
Later that month, on 30 May 1972, in an attack known as the
Lod Airport massacre, 24 people were killed and 80 injured when three members of the
Japanese Red Army sprayed machine gun fire into the passenger arrival area. The victims included
Aharon Katzir
Aharon Katzir (Aharon Katzir-Katchalsky) (September 15, 1914 – May 30, 1972) was an Israeli pioneer in the study of the electrochemistry of biopolymers.
Biography
Born 1914 in Łódź, Poland, he moved to Mandatory Palestine in 1925, where he ...
, a prominent
protein biophysicist and brother of Israel's 4th president. Those injured included
Efraim Katzir
Ephraim Katzir ( he, אפרים קציר, translit=Efrayim Katsir; – 30 May 2009) was an Israeli biophysicist and Labor Party politician. He was the fourth President of Israel from 1973 until 1978.
Biography
Efraim Katchalski (later Katzir ...
and a group of twenty
Puerto Rican tourists who had just arrived in Israel. The only terrorist who survived was
Kozo Okamoto, who received a life sentence but was released in 1985 as part of a prisoner exchange with the
PFLP-GC.
Since the 1980s
More buildings and runways were added over the years, but with the onset of mass
immigration from
Ethiopia and the former
Soviet Union in the 1980s and 90s, as well as the global increase of international business travel, the existing facilities became painfully inadequate, prompting the design of a new state-of-the-art terminal that could also accommodate the expected tourism influx for the 2000 millennium celebrations. The decision to go ahead with the project was reached in January 1994, but the new terminal, known as Terminal 3, only opened its doors a decade later, on 2 November 2004. During a
conflict with Gaza in July 2014, several airlines
banned their flights to the airport for a couple of days.
The furthest nonstop flight to have departed the airport was a private
Airbus A340-500
The Airbus A340 is a long-range, wide-body passenger airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus.
In the mid-1970s, Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner, and developed the A340 quadjet in parallel with ...
owned by billionaire casino mogul
Sheldon Adelson who flew on 2 January 2017 to
Honolulu on a route over the
Arctic Ocean. The flight was projected to last 17 hours and 40 minutes.
Ramon Airport
Ramon Airport ( he, נמל התעופה רמון, Arabic: مطار رامون) , named after Ilan and Asaf Ramon and unofficially also known as Eilat-Ramon Airport, is an international airport located in the Timna Valley in southern Israel. Ram ...
, an international airport near the southern Israeli city of
Eilat
Eilat ( , ; he, אֵילַת ; ar, إِيلَات, Īlāt) is Israel's southernmost city, with a population of , a busy port and popular resort at the northern tip of the Red Sea, on what is known in Israel as the Gulf of Eilat and in Jordan ...
, serves as a
diversion airport for Ben Gurion Airport.
Passenger terminals
Terminal 1
History
Prior to the opening of Terminal 3, Terminal 1 was the main terminal building at Ben Gurion Airport. At that time, the departures
check-in area was located on the ground floor. From there, passengers proceeded upstairs to the main departures hall, which contained
passport control
Border control refers to measures taken by governments to monitor and regulate the movement of people, animals, and goods across land, air, and maritime borders. While border control is typically associated with international borders, it a ...
,
duty-free shops,
VIP lounges, one synagogue and boarding gates. At the gates, travelers would be required to descend a flight of stairs to return to the ground floor where waiting shuttle buses transported them to airplanes on the
tarmac Tarmac may refer to:
Engineered surfaces
* Tarmacadam, a mainly historical tar-based material for macadamising road surfaces, patented in 1902
* Asphalt concrete, a macadamising material using asphalt instead of tar which has largely superseded ta ...
. The arrivals hall with passport control, luggage carousels, duty-free pick-up and customs was located at the south end of the building. The
apron buses transferred passengers and crews to and from the terminal to airplanes which were parked on the tarmac over away. After Terminal 3 opened, Terminal 1 was closed except for domestic flights to the airport in
Eilat
Eilat ( , ; he, אֵילַת ; ar, إِيلَات, Īlāt) is Israel's southernmost city, with a population of , a busy port and popular resort at the northern tip of the Red Sea, on what is known in Israel as the Gulf of Eilat and in Jordan ...
and government flights such as special immigrant flights from North America and Africa. Chartered flights organised by
Nefesh B'Nefesh
Nefesh B'Nefesh ( he, נפש בנפש, lit=Soul to soul), or Jewish Souls United, a nonprofit organization, promotes, encourages and facilitates aliyah (Jews, Jewish immigration to Israel) from the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. T ...
carrying immigrants from North America and England use this terminal for their landing ceremonies several times a year.
Although Terminal 1 was closed between 2003 and 2007, the building served as a venue for various events and large-scale exhibitions including the "
Bezalel Academy of Arts Centennial Exhibition" which was held there in 2006.
The renovations for the terminal were designed by Yosef Assa with three individual atmospheric themes. Firstly, the public halls have a ''Land-of-Israel character'' with walls painted in the colors of Israel's
Judean,
Jerusalem and
Galilee
Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Galil ...
mountains. The Departure Hall is given an atmosphere of vacation and leisure, whilst the Arrivals Hall is given a more urban theme as passengers return to the city.
In February 2006, the
Israel Airports Authority announced plans to invest 4.3 million
NIS
Nis, Niš, NiS or NIS may refer to:
Places
* Niš, a city in Serbia
* Nis, Iran, a village
* Ness, Lewis ( gd, Nis, links=no), a village in the Outer Hebrides islands
Businesses and organizations
* Naftna Industrija Srbije, Petroleum Industry of ...
in a new VIP wing for
private jet passengers and crews, as well as others interested in avoiding the main terminal. VIP ground services already exist, but a substantial increase in users has justified expanding the facilities, which will also boost airport revenues. The IAA released figures showing significant growth in private jet flights (4,059, a 36.5% increase from 2004) as well as private jet users (14,613, a 46.2% increase from 2004). The new VIP wing, operated by an outside licensee, will be located in an upgraded and expanded section of Terminal 1. All flight procedures (security check,
passport control
Border control refers to measures taken by governments to monitor and regulate the movement of people, animals, and goods across land, air, and maritime borders. While border control is typically associated with international borders, it a ...
and
customs
Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out of a country. Traditionally, customs ...
) will be handled here. This wing will include a hall equipped for press conferences, a deluxe lounge, special meeting rooms equipped with state-of-the-art business facilities and a designated lounge for flight crews who spend time at the airport between flights. It was announced in January 2008, however, that the IAA planned to construct a new 1000square metre VIP terminal next to Terminal 3.
International low-cost and domestic terminal
Terminal 1 was closed in 2003 and re-opened in 2007 as the domestic terminal following extensive renovations, and in July 2008, to cater for summer charter and low-cost flights.
[ ] It remained open for these charter and low-cost flights for the 2008 summer season then temporarily closed in October 2008, when it underwent further renovation and reopened again in Summer 2009, when it was expected to reach a three-month capacity of 600,000 passengers on international flights.
As of 2010, several
low-cost carriers
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (occasionally referred to as '' no-frills'', ''budget'' or '' discount carrier'' or ''airline'', and abbreviated as ''LCC'') is an airline that is operated with an especially high emphasis on minimizing op ...
' international flights were operating out of Terminal 1 year-round including
Vueling flights to
Barcelona and
easyJet flights to
London (Luton),
Manchester,
Geneva, and
Basel. In 2015, due to increased demand and following another expansion of the terminal, the Israel Airports Authority made Terminal 1 available to all low-cost carriers under certain conditions. Flights operating out of Terminal 1 are charged lower airport fees than those operating out of Terminal 3.
Until the summer of 2017 Terminal 1 was used for flight check-in, security screening and passport-control for international flights for passengers of certain low-cost airlines, but following passport control passengers were bussed to the departures concourse of Terminal 3 from which they boarded their flights. All incoming flights for airlines operating out of Terminal 1 were handled in Terminal 3. However, beginning on 19 June 2017 and following several months of renovations, Terminal 1 passengers began being bussed directly to their flights from Terminal 1, although incoming passengers continue to be handled in Terminal 3. The renovations to Terminal 1's boarding area included adding duty-free shops, restaurants and cafes. The terminal was also equipped with advanced checked-baggage handling and screening systems, similar to those in Terminal 3.
A free public shuttle from Terminal 3 and the railway station to and from Terminal 1 operates approximately every 15 to 30 minutes (depending on the time of day).
Terminal 3
Terminal 3, which opened on 28 October 2004, replaced Terminal 1 as the main international gateway to and from Israel. The building was designed by
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is an American architectural, urban planning and engineering firm. It was founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel A. Owings, Nathaniel Owings in Chicago, Illinois. In 1939, they were joined by engineer Jo ...
(SOM).
Moshe Safdie & Associates and TRA (now
Black and Veatch
Black & Veatch (BV) is the largest engineering firm in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Founded in 1915 in Kansas City, Missouri it is now headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas It is a global engineering, procurement, construction ( EPC) and c ...
)
designed a linking structure and the airside departure areas and gates.
Ram Karmi
Ram Karmi ( he, רם כרמי; 1931 – 11 April 2013) was an Israeli architect. He was head of the Tel Aviv-based Ram Karmi Architects company, and is known for his Brutalist architecture, Brutalist style.
Biography
Ram Karmi was born in Jerusale ...
and other Israeli architects were the local architects of record. The inaugural flight was an
El Al flight to
John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City.
Work on ''Natbag 2000'', as the Terminal 3 project was known, was scheduled for completion prior to 2000 in order to handle a massive influx of
pilgrims expected for the
Millennium celebrations. This deadline was not met due to higher than anticipated costs and a series of work stoppages in the wake of the bankruptcy of the main Turkish contractor. The project eventually cost an estimated one billion US dollars. Due to the proximity of the airport to the country's largest population centres and the problem of
noise pollution, another international airport is being considered to be built elsewhere in the country, such as the new
Ilan and Assaf Ramon Airport in Southern Israel.
The overall layout of Terminal 3 is similar to that of airports in Europe and North America, with multiple levels and considerable distances to walk after disembarking from the aircraft. The walk is assisted by
escalators
An escalator is a moving staircase which carries people between floors of a building or structure. It consists of a motor-driven chain of individually linked steps on a track which cycle on a pair of tracks which keep the step tread horizo ...
and
moving walkways
A moving walkway, also known as an autowalk, moving pavement, moving sidewalk, people-mover, travolator, or travelator, is a slow-moving conveyor mechanism that transports people across a horizontal or inclined plane over a short to medium distan ...
. The upper level departures hall, with an area of over , is equipped with 110
check-in counters and as well as
flight information display systems. A small shopping mall, known as ''Buy & Bye'', is open to both travellers and the general public. The mall, which includes shops, restaurants and a post office, was planned to be a draw for non-flyers too. On the same level as the mall, passengers enter passport control and the security check. Planes taking off and landing can be viewed from a distinctive tilted glass wall. The arrivals hall is located on the ground floor where there are also 20 additional check-in counters (serving
Star Alliance airlines).
Car rental counters are located in an intermediate level situated between the departing and arriving passenger halls. Terminal 3 has two
synagogues.
After the main security check, passengers wait for their flights in the star-shaped duty-free rotunda. A variety of cafes, restaurants and duty-free shops are located there, open 24 hours a day, as well as a synagogue, banking facilities, a transit hall for connecting passengers and a desk for
VAT
A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the en ...
refunds.
Terminal 3 has a total of 40 gates divided among four concourses (B, C, D, and E), each with 8
jet bridge-equipped gates (numbered 2 through 9), as well as two stand gates (bus bays 1 and 1A) from which passengers are ferried to aircraft. Two gates in concourse E utilize dual jet bridges for more efficient processing of very large widebody aircraft. Concourses B, C, and D were opened when terminal 3 opened in 2004, while concourse E was completed in 2018. Space exists for one additional concourse (A) at Terminal 3.
Free
wireless internet is provided throughout the terminal.
The terminal has three business lounges—the exclusive
El Al King David Lounge
El Al Israel Airlines Ltd. (, he, אל על נתיבי אויר לישראל בע״מ), trading as El Al (Hebrew: , "Upwards", "To the Skies" or "Skywards", stylized as ELAL; ar, إل-عال), is the flag carrier of Israel. Since its inaugura ...
for frequent flyers and three ''Dan'' lounges for either privileged or paying flyers.
In January 2007, the IAA announced plans for a 120-bed hotel to be located about 300 m west of Terminal 3. The tender for the hotel was published by the IAA in late 2017. The winning bidder will construct and operate the hotel for a period of 25 years.
Former and unopened terminals
Terminal 2
Terminal 2 was inaugurated in 1969 when
Arkia
Arkia, legally incorporated as Arkia Israeli Airlines Ltd ( he, ארקיע, ''I will soar'', ar, خطوط أركيا), is an Israeli airline. Its head office is on the grounds of Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel. It is Israel's second-largest ...
resumed operations at the airport after the
Six-Day War. Terminal 2 served domestic flights until 20 February 2007 when these services moved into the refurbished Terminal 1. Due to increased traffic in the late 1990s and
over-capacity
Capacity utilization or capacity utilisation is the extent to which a firm or nation employs its installed productive capacity. It is the relationship between output that ''is'' produced with the installed equipment, and the potential output whic ...
reached at Terminal 1, an international section was added until Terminal 3 was opened. After the transfer of domestic services to Terminal 1, Terminal 2 was demolished in order to make room for additional air freight handling areas.
Terminal 4
This terminal, built in 1999, was meant to handle the crowds expected in 2000, but never officially opened. To date, it has only been used as a terminal for passengers arriving from Asia during the
SARS epidemic.
Another use for the terminal was for the memorial ceremonies upon the arrival of the
casket of Col.
Ilan Ramon after the
Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
The Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster was a fatal accident in the United States space program that occurred on February 1, 2003. During the STS-107 mission, Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disintegrated as it reentered the atmosphere over Texa ...
in February 2003 and the arrival of
Elhanan Tannenbaum and the caskets of three Israeli soldiers from Lebanon in January 2004.
Future development
In December 2017, the IAA announced a long-term expansion plan for Ben Gurion Airport estimated to cost approximately NIS 9 billion. Plans include further expansion of Terminal 1, a new dedicated domestic flights terminal, a major expansion of Terminal 3's landside terminal which would add approximately 90 additional check-in counters, construction of Concourse A, and additional aircraft parking spaces and ramps. In addition, air cargo facilities would be relocated to a large, currently-unused tract of land in the northern part of the airport's property (north of runway 08/26) where additional aircraft maintenance facilities would also be built.
In the meantime, to ease immediate overcrowding problems at Terminal 3's landside terminal, in the Spring of 2018 a temporary large, air-conditioned tent was erected adjacent to Terminal 3 housing 25 check-in counters and security screening facilities. This tent was used for compulsory COVID-19 testing for all arriving passengers between 2020 and 2022.
In August 2018, the IAA published a tender for the construction and operation of a new terminal, dedicated to handling private and executive aircraft traffic.
In late 2021 construction began on a new interchange that will provide additional access to the airport from Highway 1. The new interchange will significantly reduce the distance vehicles must travel to access the airport's main terminal from the direction of Tel Aviv and other points north and west of the airport.
Office buildings
The Airport City development, a large office park, is located east of the main airport property. It is at the junction of the
Jerusalem and
Tel Aviv metropolitan areas.
The head office of
El Al is located at Ben Gurion Airport,
[Orme, William A. Jr. "El Al at a Turning Point; A Mirror of Israel's Divisions Prepares to Go 49% Public". ''The New York Times''. 5 March 1999. C1, New York Edition]
1
Retrieved 15 February 2010. as is the head office of the
Israel Airports Authority.
The head offices of the
Civil Aviation Authority
A civil aviation authority (CAA) is a national or supranational statutory authority that oversees the regulation of civil aviation, including the maintenance of an aircraft register.
Role
Due to the inherent dangers in the use of flight vehicles, ...
and
CAL Cargo Air Lines are located in the Airport City office park nearby the airport.
In addition,
Israel Aerospace Industries also maintains its head office on airport grounds as well as extensive aviation construction and repair facilities.
Runways
Main runway
The closest
runway to terminals 1 and 3 is 12/30, in length, and is followed by a
taxiway. Most
landings take place on this runway from West to East, approaching from the
Mediterranean Sea over southern Tel Aviv. During inclement weather, it may also be used for
takeoffs (Direction 12). A 17 million NIS renovation project was completed in November 2007 which reinforced the runway and made it suitable for future
wide-body aircraft. In September 2008, a new
ILS serving the runway was activated. The main runway was closed from 2011 until early 2014 in order to accommodate the extension of runway 03/21 and other construction activity in the vicinity of the runway.
Short runway
When it was originally built, the short runway (direction 03/21) was long, making it too short to accommodate most mainline passenger jets. At the time it mainly served
cargo aircraft of the
Israeli Air Force and as a taxiway for runway 26. However, by late 2011, the runway was closed and most of the activity in the military apron to the east of the runway was permanently relocated to the
Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel. In late May 2014 the runway was reopened after having been rebuilt and lengthened to , allowing it to handle most types of aircraft. It is equipped with an ILS and mostly handles landings from north to south.
Quiet runway
The longest runway at the airfield, , and the main take off runway from east to west (direction 08/26), is referred to as "the quiet runway" since jets taking off in this direction produce less
noise pollution for surrounding residents. A 24 million NIS renovation project completed in February 2006 reinforced the runway and made it suitable for
wide-body aircraft such as
Airbus A380.
History and development
The original layout of the airfield as designed by the British in the 1930s included four intersecting 800 m runways suitable for the
piston engined aircraft of the day. However, none of this original layout is visible nowadays since as usage increased and aircraft types and needs changed over the years various runways on the airport's premises were built and removed.
The main runway (12/30) is the oldest surviving runway in the airport, with the quiet (08/26) and short (03/21) runways having been built in the late 1960s and 1970s. Since very little commercial traffic could operate on the short runway, it meant that for approximately forty years, the airport mostly relied on runways 12/30 and 08/26. This presented a problem however; the fact that these two runways intersect near their western end creates a crisscross pattern between aircraft landing and taking off. This pattern reduces the number of aircraft which can arrive to and depart from the airport and has detrimental safety implications as well.
With passenger traffic projected to increase, plans were drawn in the 1980s and 90s for the extension of runways 03/21 and 08/26 as a means of alleviating some of Ben Gurion's safety and capacity concerns. These plans were approved in 1997 and construction began in 2010. The extension of runway 03/21 allows the airport to operate in an "open V" configuration, allowing for simultaneous landings and take offs on runways 08/26 and 03/21 and thus more than double the number of aircraft movements which can be handled at peak times, while increasing the overall level of air safety in and around the airport. Construction took four years and cost 1 billion NIS (financed from the Israeli Airports Authority budget) and was completed 29 May 2014. It included paving 22 kilometers of runways and taxiways, using more than 1.5 million tons of asphalt, laying one million meters of runway lighting cables, 50,000 meters of high-voltage power lines and 10,000 light fixtures. The construction of several new taxiways between the existing runways and terminals also significantly reduced
taxi times at the airport.
Citizen objections
While Ben Gurion Airport is conveniently located in the very center of the country, this fact also means that the airport is surrounded by various residential communities who often complain of noise pollution caused by the airport. Following the completion of the extension of runway 03/21, residents north of the airport sued the Israeli aviation authorities claiming that the authorities intend to use the runway to a greater degree than was originally agreed with them during the approval process for the airport runways' reconfiguration project.
Security procedures
Overview
Security at Ben Gurion International Airport operates on several levels.
All cars, taxis, buses and trucks go through a preliminary security
checkpoint
Checkpoint may refer to:
Places
* Border checkpoint, a place on the land border between two states where travellers and/or goods are inspected
* Security checkpoint, erected and enforced within contiguous areas under military or paramilitary co ...
before entering the airport compound. Armed
guards spot-check the vehicles by looking into cars, taxis and boarding buses, exchanging a few words with the driver and passengers. Armed security personnel stationed at the terminal entrances keep a close watch on those who enter the buildings. If someone arouses their suspicion or looks nervous, they may strike up a conversation to further assess the person's intent.
Plainclothes armed personnel patrol the area outside the building, and hidden
surveillance cameras operate at all times. Inside the building, both uniformed and plainclothes security officers are on constant patrol. Departing passengers are personally questioned by security agents even before arriving at the check-in desk. This interview can last as little as a minute, or as long as an hour if a passenger is selected for additional screening. Luggage and
body search
Frisking (also called a patdown or pat down) is a search of a person's outer clothing wherein a person runs their hands along the outer garments of another to detect any concealed weapons or objects.
U.S. Law
In the United States, a law enforce ...
es may be conducted.
Until August 2007, there was a system of color codes on
checked baggage but the practice was discontinued after complaints of discrimination. In the past, checked baggages were screened following the personal interview and before passengers arrived at the check-in desks. Occasionally, if security assessed a person as a low risk, they were passed straight through to the check-in desks, bypassing the main
X-ray machines, a practice which also drew some discrimination complaints. This process ceased in April 2014 when the main X-ray machines were removed from the passenger queuing area in terminal 3 and baggage screening began being performed after the baggage was checked-in by airline representatives (as is common in most airports around the world). Terminal 1 began using the same procedure in summer 2017.
Baggage screening
After check-in, all checked baggage is screened using sophisticated X-ray and
CT scanners and put in a pressure chamber to trigger any possible explosive devices. Following the check-in process, passengers continue to personal security and passport control. Before passing through the
metal detectors and putting carry-on baggage through the X-ray machine at the security checkpoint, passports and boarding passes are re-inspected and additional questions may be asked. Before boarding the aircraft, passports and boarding passes are verified once again. Security procedures for incoming flights are not as stringent, but passengers may be questioned by passport control depending on
country of origin, or countries visited prior to arrival in Israel. Passengers who have recently visited Arab countries are subject to further questioning.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
The following airlines serve regular scheduled and charter destinations at Ben Gurion Airport.
Cargo
Statistics
In 2020, 4,808,980 passengers passed through the airport. The ten busiest airlines on international routes were:
El Al (906,619),
Israir
Israir Airlines Ltd., more commonly referred to as Israir, is an Israeli airline headquartered in Tel Aviv. It operates domestic scheduled and air taxi flights from Ben Gurion International Airport, Ramon Airport, and Haifa Airport as well as in ...
(378,958),
Turkish Airlines (310,950),
United Airlines (265,747),
easyJet (258,924),
Wizz Air
Wizz Air, legally incorporated as Wizz Air Hungary Ltd. ( hu, Wizz Air Hungary Légiközlekedési Zrt.) is a Hungarian ultra-low-cost carrier with its head office in Budapest, Hungary. The airline serves many cities across Europe, as well as s ...
(244,445),
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish ultra low-cost carrier founded in 1984. It is headquartered in Swords, Dublin, Ireland and has its primary operational bases at Dublin and London Stansted airports. It forms the largest part of the Ryanair Holdings family ...
(233,878),
Arkia
Arkia, legally incorporated as Arkia Israeli Airlines Ltd ( he, ארקיע, ''I will soar'', ar, خطوط أركيا), is an Israeli airline. Its head office is on the grounds of Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel. It is Israel's second-largest ...
(229,910),
Pegasus Airlines (164,051),
Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), commonly shortened to Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. When combined with its subsidiaries, it is the second- largest airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried. Lufthansa is one of the five founding m ...
(139,604) and
Aeroflot
PJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines (russian: ПАО "Аэрофло́т — Росси́йские авиали́нии", ), commonly known as Aeroflot ( or ; russian: Аэрофлот, , ), is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Russia. The ...
(125,098).
[https://monthlyreport.iaa.gov.il/OpenPdf.aspx?lang=eng&val=202013 ]
Commercial flights from
Sde Dov Airport
Sde Dov Airport ( he, שדה דב, ''lit.'' Dov Field, ar, مطار سدي دوف), also known as Dov Hoz Airport ( he, נמל התעופה דב הוז, ''Nemal HaTe'ufa Dov Hoz'', ar, مطار دوف هوز) was an airport in Tel Aviv, Israe ...
which, until its closure in July 2019, handled more domestic passengers annually than TLV have been moved to Ben Gurion.
Top destinations by number of passengers
Ground transportation
The airport is located near
Highway 1
The following highways are numbered 1.
For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads.
For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads.
For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads.
For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads.
For roads numbered ...
, the main Jerusalem–Tel Aviv Highway and
Highway 40. The airport is accessible by car or public bus.
Israel Railways operates
train service from the airport to several parts of the country and taxi stands are located outside the arrivals building. A popular transportation option is a
share taxi van, known in Hebrew as a ''monit sherut'' (service cab), going to
Jerusalem,
Haifa and
Beersheba.
Public transport
Israel has an integrated nationwide
public transport payment system covering multiple transit options (train, bus and light rail) run by various operators using a single payment card: the
Rav-Kav
Rav-Kav ( he, רב-קו, ''lit.'' "multi-line") is a reusable contactless stored value smart card for making electronic payments as a joint fare collection system for the different public transportation operators across Israel.
Rav-Kav can be ...
. It features flexible tariff arrangements and offers free transfers between transit methods within certain geographical zones and time periods. A public transport information office which also issues Rav-Kav cards is located in the arrivals hall of Terminal 3. With a few exceptions, most public transport options (except for taxis and service cabs) do not operate on the Sabbath (i.e., from early Friday evenings to late Saturday evenings as well as certain Jewish holidays).
A new app payment system was introduced in December 2020. The app has a different, simpler fare system (that can be more expensive in some cases and cheaper in others) and it's post pay (The Rav Kav is a pre-paid card that you need to top up). The charge is at the end of each month (so a registration and a payment method are required). There are four available apps: the government-owned app called "The Station" (''Hataḥana'') and three private ones—RavPass (by HopOn), ANYWAY (by Isracard) and Moovit (by Moovit and Pango).
Rail
Israel Railways operates the
Ben Gurion Airport Railway Station, located in the lower level of Terminal 3. From this station passengers may head northwest to
Tel Aviv,
Haifa and other destinations in the north, or southeast to
Modi'in and
Jerusalem. The journey to
Tel Aviv Savidor Central railway station takes about 18 minutes and to Jerusalem's
Yitzhak Navon station about 25 minutes. There is also late night/early morning train service to and from the airport terminating at
Beersheba Center via
Lod
Lod ( he, לוד, or fully vocalized ; ar, اللد, al-Lidd or ), also known as Lydda ( grc, Λύδδα), is a city southeast of Tel Aviv and northwest of Jerusalem in the Central District of Israel. It is situated between the lower Shephe ...
,
Ashkelon and selected destinations in between. Almost 3.3 million passengers used the railway line to and from the airport in 2009. The service does not operate on
Shabbat
Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...
and
Jewish holidays but on all other days it runs day and night. The line to
Nahariya
Nahariya ( he, נַהֲרִיָּה, ar, نهاريا) is the northernmost coastal city in Israel. In it had a population of .
Etymology
Nahariya takes its name from the stream of Ga'aton (river is ''nahar'' in Hebrew), which bisects it.
Hist ...
through Tel Aviv and Haifa operated 24 hours a day on weekdays, but these services were suspended following the COVID-19 pandemic and put on hold until railway electrification works are completed in the mid-2020s, following which the line would run from Jerusalem and terminate at
Karmiel
Karmiel ( he, כַּרְמִיאֵל) is a city in northern Israel. Established in 1964 as a development town, Karmiel is located in the Beit HaKerem Valley which divides upper and lower Galilee. The city is located south of the Acre-Safed road, f ...
instead of Nahariya (though it would continue to service Tel Aviv and Haifa).
Bus or taxi
The airport is served by regular inter-city bus lines, limousine and private shuttle services,
Sherut "shared" door to door taxi vans and regular taxis. Afikim bus company provides 24 hours a day, on the hour, direct service to Jerusalem with line 485. the line departs from Terminal 3 on the 2nd floor and passes through Terminal 1.
Egged bus number 5 ferries passengers between the terminals and a small bus terminal in the nearby Airport City business park near El Al junction just outside the airport where they can connect to regular Egged bus routes passing through the area. Passengers connecting at Airport City can pay for both rides on the same ticket, not having to pay an extra fare for bus No. 5. Other bus companies directly serve Terminal 3, and the airport also provides a free shuttle bus between terminals. On Shabbat, when there is no train service, a shared shuttle service is available between the airport and Tel Aviv hotels.
Car
Located on
Highway 1
The following highways are numbered 1.
For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads.
For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads.
For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads.
For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads.
For roads numbered ...
, the Jerusalem – Tel Aviv highway, the airport has a total of approximately 20,000
parking space
A parking space, parking place or parking spot is a location that is designated for parking, either paved or unpaved. It can be in a parking garage, in a parking lot or on a city street. The space may be delineated by road surface markings. ...
s for short and long-term parking. The spaces for long-term parking are situated several kilometres from the terminal, and are reached by a free shuttle bus. Car rental at the airport is available from Avis, Budget, Eldan, Tamir Rental, Thrifty, Hertz and Shlomo Sixt.
Service quality
Passenger rankings
In December 2006, Ben Gurion International Airport ranked first among 40 European airports and 8th out of 77 airports in the world, in a survey, conducted by
Airports Council International, to determine the most customer-friendly airport.
Tel Aviv placed second in the grouping of airports which carry between 5 and 15 million passengers per year behind
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
's
Nagoya Airport. The survey consisted of 34 questions. A random sampling of 350 passengers at the departure gate were asked how satisfied they were with the service, infrastructure and facilities. Ben Gurion received a rating of 3.94 out of 5, followed by Vienna, Munich, Amsterdam, Brussels, Zürich, Copenhagen and Helsinki. The airport retained its title as the best Middle Eastern airport in the 2007, 2008 and 2009 surveys.
Awards
Notes
References
External links
Official website
*
{{authority control
1934 establishments in Mandatory Palestine
Airports established in 1934
Airports in Israel
Buildings and structures in Central District (Israel)
Lod
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill buildings
Commemoration of David Ben-Gurion