Arkia Israeli Airlines has announced an expansion of activities for the spring and summer of 2026 and is also launching business class on its routes to Europe, for the first time in the carrier’s history.
The new destinations in the summer includes Malaga and Ibiza in Spain and Vilnius in Lithuania, as well as Phuket in Thailand.
Between July and September there will be a weekly flight to and from Malaga on Tuesdays with return fares starting from $782. In July and August there will be two weekly flights to and from Ibiza on Sundays and Thursdays with return fares starting from $586. In the summer there will also be two weekly flights to and from Vilnius on Mondays and Fridays with return fares starting from $370.
On the Tel Aviv – Phuket route, Arkia will compete with El Al, which already operates direct flights on the line. There are also many connection flights to Phuket from Israel via the UAE and Ethiopia. On flights between Tel Aviv and Malaga, Arkia will compete with Israir, while on flights to Vilnius it will be competing with Air Baltic, Israir and Wizz Air.
Arkia has also announced that it will begin offering business class on Airbus A320 aircraft on selected routes in Europe. In the first stage, business class will be launched on the Paris route and will include 12 seats, expanded baggage allowance, use of a lounge and dedicated ground services. The price of a Tel Aviv – Paris round trip ticket in business class will start at $1,700.
The New York route has increased Arkia’s appetite to compete with El Al
Arkia’s move comes after the airline has expanded operations to long-haul destinations. Before the war the company did not operate such flights.
At the start of 2025, Arkia began operating flights to New York, in the absence of US airlines and the shortage of supply on the route. To this end, Arkia leased wide-body aircraft and has since continued to expand to other popular long-haul destinations, including East Asia. Last November, Arkia launched a route to Bangkok, Thailand, which became the first route to compete with El Al, and in January, it launched flights to Hanoi, Vietnam.
Shortly after Arkia’s move to expand in East Asia, El Al announced the launch of direct routes to Seoul, Manila, and Hanoi. In Hanoi, El Al will be able to compete with Arkia starting in October 2026, after Arkia also competed with it on the routes to New York and Bangkok, and ahead of the competition between them on Phuket starting July.
Israir also aims to expand to long-haul destinations and is considering opening direct routes to major destinations in the US, including New York and Miami, as well as to destinations in East Asia, including Japan, Hong Kong, China, the Philippines, and Thailand. Unlike Arkia, which leases aircraft, Israir is in the process of purchasing wide-body aircraft.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on February 16, 2026.
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