FAA Lifts Flight Restrictions for Ben Gurion International Airport

[cal04]

Source: FAA

Press Release – FAA Statement–FAA Lifts Flight Restrictions for Ben Gurion International Airport

The FAA has lifted its restrictions on U.S. airline flights into and out of Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport by cancelling a Notice to Airmen it renewed earlier today. The cancellation is effective at approximately 11:45 p.m. EDT.

Before making this decision, the FAA worked with its U.S. government counterparts to assess the security situation in Israel and carefully reviewed both significant new information and measures the Government of Israel is taking to mitigate potential risks to civil aviation.

The FAA’s primary mission and interest are the protection of people traveling on U.S. airlines. The agency will continue to closely monitor the very fluid situation around Ben Gurion Airport and will take additional actions, as necessary.

Read more: http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=16734

[BillZBubb]

1. Wow, AIPAC works fast!

[Purveyor]

10. They get what they have 'paid for', indeed.

[Cali_Democrat]

16. Are you implying that AIPAC bought off the FAA?

What exactly are you implying?

[totodeinhere]

11. Or maybe the FAA decided that it's safe. Not everything is a conspiracy. n/t

[alp227]

12. Earlier thread on AIPAC's complaint about the FAA decision

(before you hit alert because this post violates ToS by "claiming nefarious influence by Jews/Zionists/Israel&quot

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025281965

[onecaliberal]

2. If the FAA was really worried

About keeping the planes safe they wouldn't have lifted the restriction. They bowed to pressure from AIPAC.

[amandabeech]

3. Any news from the airlines themselves?

They, and their insurers, are the ones who will be responsible if something goes wrong.

[cal04]

6. One. American

At least one U.S. airline said Wednesday they were ready to resume flights. American Airlines, which merged with US Airways, said that it would resume the US Airways flights between Philadelphia and Tel Aviv once the FAA allowed it.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2014/07/23/faa-u-s-flights-banned-from-flying-to-and-from-israel-for-another-day/#

[RobertEarl]

8. That is crazy to fly into a war zone

But I guess there is money to be made?

[amandabeech]

9. You won't catch me on that plane.

Maybe Hamas should run ads in Philadelphia print, broadcast and online media stating that they are at war with Israel, and that their rockets may hit civilian installations without warning, and that passengers fly at their own risk.

That's pretty much what the Germans did with the Lusitania, and a bunch of people sailed on her anyway.

Many did not arrive at their destinations in Britain.

And we went to war with Germany and Austria-Hungary.

[christx30]

17. How can they give warning?

Even they don't know where their rockets are landing. They are unguided. They just fire, then Hamas watches the news to see what happened.

[amandabeech]

18. Hamas can warn that their rockets can land in BG airport.

It's not as accurate as the Lusitania advertisement, of course.

I hate to give Hamas any power to shut down air service, but really, I think that travelers should be informed of any danger in their itinerary so that they can judge for themselves.

[killbotfactory]

4. How would we react if Hamas actually hit a passenger jet? nt

[amandabeech]

5. That is a very interesting question,

and I hope that someone in the administration has several good answers.

Hamas could get lucky, and it would only take one rocket and one plane, and there would be hell to pay and rightly so.

[RobertEarl]

7. They've been warned, haven't they? <sarcasm, deep and cynical>

Everyone should be objecting to this war. Kerry and Obama are. The dead children would if they could. So, who is not objecting to this war? I see a few on DU who do not object.

[quadrature]

14. does Hamas give warnings on 121.5Mhz emergency frequency?

would be the legal issue.

[totodeinhere]

13. The only reason that the ban was put in place in the first place was because of what

happened in Ukraine. Israel has had rockets fired at it for years and never has there been a direct hit on Ben Gurion Airport. I would personally feel safe landing there.

[alcibiades_mystery]

15. A rocket landed successfully a mile (5,300 feet) from the runway

That's what caused the ban. It had nothing to do with Ukraine.

We don't fly passenger jets into runways that are under live rocket fire. This isn't too hard to understand.

[totodeinhere]

20. The Israelis were tracking that particular rocket and there was never any chance that

it would hit the airport. I think the reason why some people are upset that the FAA lifted the ban is because they were enjoying the prospect of a propaganda victory by Hamas. Are Israel's detractors really all that concerned about safety at the airport, or are they reveling in the prospect of the economic hardship that a flight ban would cause Israel?

[alcibiades_mystery]

21. I trust the FAA over propagandists for either side

If the FAA believed there was a reason for the ban, there probably was. If the FAA thinks the airport is safe at this point, it probably is.

The lies and nonsense from both sides mean little to me. The flight ban seemed appropriate. As for what you "think" about what other people believe, I couldn't care less.

[BeyondGeography]

22. +1...It's an independent agency

As if Obama would ever do anything to politicize safety anyway. Many comments re. the FAA here the past few days have been juvenile and fantastical.

[totodeinhere]

23. I actually agree with you on that. The FAA lifted the ban because they decided it was safe.

What I am objecting to is those who seem upset because the band was lifted. I maintain that they have their own agenda which doesn't necessarily have anything to do with aviation safety. There is at least one poster who claims that the band was lifted due to political pressure from AIPAC which is nonsense. You and I are closer on this issue than some of the others in this thread.

I don't understand your comment that you could care less what my opinion is. I thought that message boards like this existed so that people could give out various opinions. If you don't care what the opinions of others are then what are you doing here? Or do you only want to hear opinions that you agree with?

[Sherman A1]

19. I think I would have left the flight ban

in place, but one hopes that the FAA is correct in their decision.