Senior executives from Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air have been in Israel meeting with top officials at the Ministry of Transport, Israel Airports Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority. “Globes” has learned that the meetings have produced a range of conclusions and controversial ideas that shed light on the move that is destined to shake up the Israeli aviation market, which relies largely on Israeli airlines.
For several years Wizz Air, has been trying to set up a hub of operations in Israel but has been met with refusal by regulators. But over the past year, the Ministry of Transport has changed its tune, and supports the move, with Minister of Transport Miri Regev seeing such a development, if realized as the most notable achievement of her term, after failing to record major transport achievements on railways and roads.
In May Regev announced her plan to promote the preliminary opening of such a hub for Wizz Air at Ben Gurion Airport. Such a hub would allow the airline to designate Israel as the start and end point of flights, with the presence of aircraft and crews in Israel, which would enable the company to operate more Israel flights and receive valuable slots (popular takeoff and landing times), and deepen its foothold in the local market.
Israeli airlines have a comparative advantage in that their planes “stay” in Israel and can take advantage of the first and last slots of the day, which are preferred by passengers. If Wizz Air establishes a base in Israel, it will be able to enjoy the same conditions and become a dominant player during peak hours. It will also be able to continue to be a foreign company, so that it will not be subject to the strict regulation of Israeli companies, such as stricter security arrangements and coordination with El Al, which is not only a competing company, but also the provider of security services for Israeli airlines.
Ministry of Transport supports the move
The Ministry of Transport supports the move but the Civil Aviation Authority has reservations and claims, as do the Israeli airlines, that such a hub would harm them. However, many recall that there was similar opposition to the EU’s Open Skies reform, which resulted in major fare reductions for consumers. Supporters of the move add that the Israeli public should not subsidize the inefficiency in Israeli companies’ structures through exorbitant airfare, and that the move could lead to the consolidation of companies, and greater efficiency.
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In any case, it seems that despite the objections of the Israeli airlines and the dominant El Al workers’ union, Regev and the director general her ministry, Moshe Ben Zaken, plan to go ahead with the move. If Regev successfully withstands the pressure from the Israeli airlines and workers committees it could create fierce competition in fares for Israelis, or according to opponents, lead to the collapse of Israeli airlines.
Three daily flights by each aircraft
Last week, senior Wizz Air executives met at the Ministry of Transport with Ben Zaken, Or Libis, Senior Deputy Director General for Economics, Budget and Strategy at the Ministry of Transport, who supports the move as well as the managers of Ben Gurion airport and Ramon airport, and Yishai Don Yehia of the Civil Aviation Authority, which opposes the move.
At the meeting, Wizz Air revealed that it wants to open its Israel hub by April 2026, with three aircraft based in Israel. The Ministry of Transport is pressing to open it even sooner.
During the meeting, the Civil Aviation Authority tried to explain to the Hungarians that tightening noise regulations in line with European standards would limit them in night flights, but Wizz Air responded that they plan to base new Airbus 321neo aircraft here, which are quieter, so that changing the regulations would actually work in their favor.
It also emerged that Ben Gurion Airport is managing to find slots for the gradual entry of the aircraft, but it is not clear how many flights they will undertake because there is still the need to secure the flight path and slots in destination countries, but the industry estimates that at least three flights will depart each day by each aircraft – otherwise operating them will not be profitable. As previously reported by ‘Globes,” Wizz Air aims to reach 60 flights per day.
Wizz Air also plans hiring Israeli crews who will be trained at the company’s academy in Hungary. The only issues that remain open at the moment are Wizz Air’s commitments that in the event of an emergency, the airline will continue to fly. The Ministry of Transport is demanding greater guarantees than the commitment of the CEO of Wizz Air to the Minister of Transport, that as long as El Al flies, Wizz Air will also fly.
In addition, the Hungarian airline is interested in competing with Israeli companies in the long term not only on flights to Europe but also to the Balkans, the UAE and the Far East. However, to do this, Wizz Air will have to register an Israeli subsidiary that will be subject to security regulations, including a security team agreement with El Al. It is unclear whether this is a step that Wizz Air wants to take.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on August 26, 2025.
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