The Philippine government is seeking a direct flight to Israel over Saudi Arabia airspace. The state-owned Philippine Airlines launches Manila – Tel Aviv flights this year, the local media reports.
Philippine Transportation Undersecretary Manuel Tamayo said that flying over Saudi Arabia will allow carriers to save at least one hour of travel time on the Manila-Tel Aviv route.
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“We have rights already as far as Israel is concerned. Hopefully, we should get to overfly Saudi Arabia to Israel.” he said, “So we’re pushing for the signing of the overfly agreement by this quarter, as Israel is a seasonal market. Most passengers would like to travel there during the cold months.”
Tamayo stressed that Philippine Airlines is keen on launching flights from Manila to Tel Aviv. Actually, in 2013 Israel and the Philippines signed a bilateral air agreement, but so far no flights have been established.
Saudi Arabia had refused to allow aircraft headed to Israel to fly over their territory until March 2018 when Air India launched its Delhi – Tel Aviv flights over Saudi airspace.
