Ryanair (FR, Dublin International) will make its Middle Eastern debut later this winter with the launch of flights from Eastern Europe to Israel. The Irish LCC said in a statement that beginning in November, it will offer 2x weekly flights from each of Budapest (Hungary), Kaunas International (Lithuania), and Kraków John Paul II International (Poland) to the Israeli Red Sea resort town of Eilat Ovda International.
“Ryanair is pleased to announce our entry into the Israeli market from November 2015, our 31st country, with three new Eilat Ovda routes to Budapest, Kaunas and Krakow, which will deliver 40,000 customers annually," Ryanair’s Chief Commercial Officer, David O’Brien, said. "We are continuing to negotiate with the Israeli authorities and we look forward to growing our Israeli route network in the future."
To help foster growth, Israel's Ministry of Tourism is offering a subsidy of EUR45 (USD49.50) per passenger for every new international route launched.
According to the ch-aviation airline route database, LCC competition in the Europe-Israel market will come from easyJet (London Luton), UP by El Al (Tel Aviv Ben Gurion), Vueling Airlines (VY, Barcelona El Prat), Transavia Airlines (HV, Amsterdam Schiphol), and Wizz Air (W6, Budapest).
