U.S. Freezes Refueling-Aircraft Removal From Ben Gurion, 50,000 Tickets at Risk

The U.S. military paused the planned removal of refueling aircraft from Ben Gurion Airport after renewed operations against Iran, leaving dozens of military planes on parking stands needed by civilian carriers. Airports Authority Director General Sharon Kedmi warned that unless the agreed evacuation plan resumes immediately, a significant shortage of passenger-aircraft stands will begin on July 23. He said the bottleneck could force about 10 flight cancellations a day and affect roughly 50,000 tickets by the end of July. The Transportation Ministry said no additional American tankers would be allowed to land and urged the Defense Ministry to find alternatives.