Within two weeks: The average delay at Ben Gurion Airport has almost doubled
About two weeks ago, we revealed that only about a third of flights from Ben Gurion Airport departed on time. Now, as the daily number of passengers has crossed the 100,000 threshold, the rate of on-time flights remains stagnant, while the average delay has jumped from 40 to 74.3 minutes, alongside a rise in cancellations.
The peak of the August travel season continues to take a toll at Ben Gurion Airport. An analysis of TLVFLIGHT system data for 3,598 flights performed between August 5 and August 11 shows that only 30.1% of flights departed on time, while the average delay stood at 74.3 minutes. During the week, 136 flights were cancelled, and 950 others took off with a delay of at least an hour.
All this occurs as the number of passengers at Ben Gurion Airport has crossed the 100,000 threshold per day, compared to about 85,000 in July. The data indicates that the situation has not improved since our check two weeks ago; in some metrics, it has even worsened.
The numbers illustrate the scale of the disruptions: 592 flights took off with a delay of one to two hours, and 358 flights departed with a severe delay of two hours or more. A comparison with late July data shows that the on-time departure rate remains almost unchanged (31% then versus 30.1% now). However, the gap in delay duration is significant, showing an increase of about 86%. Additionally, the number of cancelled flights rose by approximately 64%.
Which airlines are falling behind
In a breakdown by airline, Wizz Air recorded an average takeoff delay of 118 minutes—nearly two hours. It is followed by Blue Bird with 107 minutes on average and TUS Airways with 101 minutes. Conversely, the most punctual company was flydubai, with 64.7% of flights taking off on schedule.
Destinations also significantly impact punctuality. Barcelona stands out negatively, with only 9.1% of flights departing on time. The situation is similar for incoming flights, with average landing delays of 163 minutes for TUS Airways, 138 minutes for Blue Bird, and 114 minutes for Arkia.
The Greek traffic jam and official response
The Israel Airports Authority announced that due to heavy air traffic over Greece, aviation authorities there are limiting the number of flights permitted to pass through their airspace. This is causing delays for flights departing from Ben Gurion Airport. The Authority emphasized that these delays stem from factors beyond their control.
"The summer months are the busiest in international aviation," the Authority stated. "We remind passengers to arrive 3 hours before their flight, a standard practice in Israel since 7.10.23. There have been no changes to these instructions, and there is no unusual manpower shortage."
