Several Israeli airlines on Friday were preparing special flights to bring Israelis back from Dubai, after a midair cockpit attack this week on a FlyDubai flight to Tel Aviv halted the only direct service between the two cities.
Thousands of Israelis are estimated to have remained in Dubai since the attack on Wednesday, according to David Sasi, a spokesman for Miri Regev, the Israeli transportation minister.
FlyDubai suspended its service between Dubai and Tel Aviv after the attack. Etihad, another Emirati airline, operates flights to Israel out of Abu Dhabi, the Emirati capital. Israeli airlines stopped flying to the United Arab Emirates at the onset of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran in late February.
Two Israeli airlines, Israir and Arkia, said Friday that they had obtained “the required permissions” to land at Dubai’s airport. Arkia said it planned to operate one flight to Dubai on Friday and another on Saturday.
El Al, Israel’s flag carrier, said that it had been “prepared to operate the special rescue flights” on Friday but that authorities had “suddenly” canceled its permission.
El Al planes were already set to take off from Tel Aviv for Dubai when their landing slots at the Dubai Airport were revoked, according to a representative for the airline. El Al said it was working to obtain new permissions to operate flights on Saturday night.
The Dubai International Airport did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Investigators are still trying to understand what prompted the attack on Wednesday, during which the co-pilot stabbed the pilot on FlyDubai Flight 1073. Israeli passengers confronted the co-pilot and subdued him, according to witnesses and Israeli officials. The aircraft lurched and descended so violently during the tumult that its rudder was damaged.
The United Arab Emirates said on Thursday that it would take the lead in investigating whether the attack was linked to terrorism. The wounded pilot and co-pilot have been transferred from Saudi Arabia, where the plane made an emergency landing, to the Emirates.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said on Thursday that the co-pilot, an Omani national, “underwent Islamist radical indoctrination.” He did not provide further details, and the man’s identity has not been made public.
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