Promoting the opening of direct flights between Israel and Vietnam.

According to the Vietnam News Agency correspondent in Israel, on November 12th, at the headquarters of Arkia Airlines in Tel Aviv, Mr. Le Thai Hoa, Commercial Counselor of the Vietnamese Embassy in Israel, held a meeting with Ms. Sapir Ifergan, Director of Commercial Business at Arkia, to discuss promoting the opening of a direct flight route between Tel Aviv, Israel, and Hanoi, Vietnam.

Ambassador Ly Duc Trung and a spokesperson for Arkia Airlines at a press conference announcing Arkia Airlines' direct Tel Aviv – Hanoi flight route. Photo: VNA.

During the meeting, Ms. Sapir Ifergan highly appreciated the potential and prospects of the Vietnamese market, in Akia's business strategy of expanding aviation cooperation and opening routes towards the East (Asia).

Accordingly, Arkia Airlines plans to launch a direct flight from Israel to Vietnam, with the first flight scheduled to begin on January 5, 2026, from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv to Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi. Initially, as part of a pilot program, for the first six months of next year, Arkia will maintain a frequency of one flight per week from January to June 2026 (with the possibility of increasing to two flights per week in March 2026, as this is a period with many holidays in Israel and the airline anticipates an increase in Israeli passengers), using wide-body aircraft with a capacity of approximately 290 seats.

Currently, Arkia has started selling tickets on its website and through its network of agents. Depending on the time of purchase, ticket prices range from approximately US$1,000/one-way for economy class (including 8kg of carry-on baggage and 32kg of checked baggage) to approximately US$2,500/one-way for business class. Because the flight takes place over the Red Sea and then loops down over the Arabian Peninsula (it does not fly over the airspace of Arab countries), the estimated flight time is approximately 11 hours and 34 minutes, departing from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv at 00:05 midnight (local time) and arriving at Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi at 16:40 the following day. Specifically for March 2026, in addition to the regular flights, the airline will add one extra flight each week, departing at 5:30 AM from Tel Aviv and arriving in Hanoi at 10:05 PM the same day. On the return leg, the flight time is nearly 12 hours, departing from Noi Bai Airport at 7:40 PM and landing at Ben Gurion Airport at 2:25 AM (local time).

The leaders of Arkia Airlines requested the Trade Office to introduce and connect the airline with Vietnamese partners operating in the aviation sector, especially airline ticket agents or Vietnamese travel agencies, so that the two sides can establish business cooperation; they also requested the Trade Office to maintain regular contact to continue supporting Arkia in expanding cooperation with the Vietnamese market in the future.

Mr. Le Thai Hoa, Commercial Counselor of the Embassy in Israel, welcomed and highly appreciated Arkia's plan to launch direct flights to Vietnam with a specific flight schedule. He stated that the embassy is always ready to actively support and connect Arkia with suitable Vietnamese partners to explore mutually beneficial business cooperation opportunities. Currently, Vietnam not only attracts investors and manufacturers worldwide thanks to the development of its manufacturing industry, attracting foreign investment and strongly exporting high-tech goods such as electronics, telecommunications, and computers, but is also undergoing strong integration and is on track to become an important manufacturing hub and a strategic link in the global supply chain.

The Vietnamese market has become an attractive destination for many foreign investors, businesses, traders, buyers, and tourists, including partners from Israel. Over the past period, economic relations, trade exchanges, and investment cooperation between Vietnam and Israel have continuously developed positively. In the context of the still unstable and challenging domestic market, the implementation of the Vietnam-Israel Bilateral Free Trade Agreement from mid-November 2024 has created a strong impetus for cooperative relations between the two sides. Many Israeli businesses, investors, buyers, and tourists are interested in the market and actively travel to Vietnam to seek business partners, as well as for sightseeing, relaxation, and enjoying life. In 2024, trade exchange between the two countries reached US$3.247 billion; of which, Vietnam's exports reached US$794.6 million and imports reached US$2.452 billion. In the first 10 months of 2025, Vietnam's exports to Israel reached US$704.3 million, an increase of 4.1%, and imports from this market reached US$2.368 billion, an increase of 22.9% compared to the same period last year. It is estimated that for the whole year of 2025, bilateral trade will reach approximately US$3.70 billion, of which Vietnam's exports will reach approximately US$880 million, an estimated increase of 10.75% compared to 2024, and imports will reach approximately US$2.82 billion. Regarding investment cooperation, to date, Israel has invested US$155.90 million in Vietnam, with 45 projects; conversely, Vietnam has invested US$78.25 million in Israel. People from both countries always hope to have the opportunity to travel and visit each other.

Once the route is launched as planned, Arkia will be the first Israeli airline to open a direct flight to Vietnam. The opening of this direct route will concretize the cooperation outlined in the Protocol signed on December 21, 2020, amending the Air Transport Cooperation Agreement between the two countries, and will also open a new chapter in tourism cooperation between the two sides. The direct flight will facilitate travel for businesses, traders, investors, buyers, tourists, and citizens between the two countries, enhancing mutual understanding and further promoting multifaceted cooperation between the two sides.

Arkia is one of three traditional Israeli airlines (not including the newly established private airline Air Haifa, founded in 2023). Alongside the national airline El Al, established in 1948, and the private airline Israir, established in 1989, Arkia was the first private airline, founded in 1949, and operates flights to over 32 destinations, primarily cities in Europe (such as London, Paris, Lyon, Strasbourg, Munich, Rome, Milan, Venice, Amsterdam, Geneva, Prague, Budapest, Vienna, Barcelona, ​​Lisbon, Athens…) and New York in the United States.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/kinh-te/thuc-day-mo-duong-bay-thang-giua-israel-va-viet-nam-20251113061811617.htm