Three Israeli airlines have added flights from Ukraine to help get their fellow Israelis out of the country in advance of a possible Russian invasion, as numerous airlines begin to cease flights through Ukrainian airspace.
Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and other Israeli officials called on Israelis in Ukraine to get out while they still can.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lior Havat told JewishPress.com on Sunday night that there are more than 30 flights this week to Israel — plenty of ways for Israelis to return. And there are still empty seats on those planes.
Non-Israeli Ukrainian Jews Can Enter as Tourists, Says Foreign Ministry
Kiev Rabbi Yonatan Markovitch, 53, told Hebrew-language Walla! News this weekend that the local Jewish community is stockpiling basic supplies in the synagogue – food and mattresses – in anticipation of a possible invasion.
The rabbi, who was born in Ukraine but grew up in Kiryat Gat, was sent as an Chabad-Lubavitch emissary to Kiev 21 years ago. He said that he and other Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries with Israeli citizenship are not planning to leave, despite Israel’s warnings.
“The Lubavitcher Rebbe sent us to be here – to be with all the Jews who are still here – and here we will stay,” he said. “In many ways, it is like being the captain of a ship.”
Rabbi Markovitch said his congregants were already aware of the rising tensions this weekend even though it was Shabbat — they “suddenly started to feel a different situation and a little pressured,” he said.
“We prepared places for Jews and Israelis who want to be together so if they decide to be evacuated and there are rescue flights, it will be easier to arrange,” the rabbi said, adding that he has received numerous calls from Israeli Jews and non-Israeli Jews who have asked him whether they should leave.
After having been in contact with the Jewish Agency, Rabbi Markovitch said that the ability to leave Ukraine differs between Israelis and non-Israelis. Although Israeli citizens can arrange to be evacuated, he said, “for other Jews it is more complicated.”
JewishPress.com asked Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson about this point.
“Israel was created to be a safe place for Jews and will always have an open door for Jews who want to immigrate to Israel, no matter what the reason is,” Havat said.
For those who are not citizens and for whom time has run out in terms of getting through the paperwork process of making aliyah, Havat pointed out, “This is a different issue. [Non-citizens] can come as tourists to Israel,” he said.
“There are hundreds of Ukrainians who come as tourists every week,” Havat said. “Even last week we had tourists arriving in Israel from Ukraine.” Even in a “regular” week, he said, there are 25 flights between Israel and Ukraine, filled with tourists visiting the Jewish State.
At this point, entry to Israel is not a question of citizenship, Havat reiterated.
“Anyone can fly to Israel,” Havat said. “They will be allowed in based on their COVID restrictions.”
In Uman – site of the Tomb of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, where thousands of Jews spend their High Holy Days in pilgrimage each year – the chief rabbi of the city last week had already called on Israeli tourists to return to Israel by this Wednesday.
In an open letter sent to the Jewish community, Rabbi Yaakov Jan told those Jews who are living in Uman to at least consider going on vacation “until the rage passes. Those who cannot leave will wait until the end of the week to see on which side things will fall.”
Israeli Airlines Adding Extra Flights
EL AL Airlines has scheduled a flight for Monday from Kiev with fares starting at $250 and has said it will operate additional flights as needed.
Arkia has scheduled two rescue flights from the country as well, one from Kiev on Monday and the other from Odessa on Tuesday, charging a fare of $300. If needed, the company has said it will add more flights.
Israir also said it is scheduling special flights from Kiev with fares starting at $305 including 8 kg of luggage.
Other international airlines are still flying out of Kiev but that may not last much longer.
No International Flight Insurance Starting Monday
Insurance companies warned air carriers that insurance will no longer cover flights over Ukraine in the coming days, according to Avianews.
Aircraft traveling through Ukrainian airspace were no longer insured by international companies as of Sunday, Feb. 13, according to Ukrainska Pravda.
Ukraine’s Expo insurance company head Anatoliy Ivantsiv told Interfax the giant international insurance firm ‘Lloyds of London’ has also announced it will temporarily cease all conflict risk insurance in Ukrainian airspace, effective the same date.
Ukraine’s State Air Traffic Services Enterprise this weekend warned airlines against flying over the Black Sea, according to the Kyiv Independent, saying the area was “potentially dangerous”.
“On February 12, 2022, the world’s largest insurance companies informed Ukrainian air carriers that in 48 hours they would stop insuring insurance for flights in Ukrainian airspace. This decision is associated with increased risks of military invasion,” said a spokesperson for SkyUp, a Ukrainian charter airline that leases its planes.
“The situation is being discussed at the state level; in order for airlines to be able to continue flights to Ukraine, the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine is holding an urgent meeting to develop solutions,” the spokesperson said.
Airlines Beginning to Suspend Ukraine Operations
Lessors for the airline demanded SkyUp return its aircraft to within the borders of the European Union until the situation has stabilized in Ukraine, according to the airline blog Paddle Your Own Kanoo.
As a result, SkyUp announced a suspension of ticket sales for three days of flights on starting Monday this week.
KLM Airlines of the Netherlands has already suspended its flights to and from Ukraine until further notice. Netherlands is particularly sensitive to potential danger in Ukraine since a Malaysian jetliner that departed from Amsterdam, heading to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down in 2014 while flying over Russian-backed rebel-held eastern Ukraine. Out of a total 298 passengers and crew aboard the flight – all of whom died – were 198 Dutch citizens.
“It is not yet clear when KLM will fly to Kiev again,” the airline said in a statement.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Infrastructure reiterated in a statement Sunday that it has not closed the skies over the country.
“Some carriers are having difficulty with fluctuations in the insurance markets,” the ministry commented. “Insurance services markets, like capital markets, are vulnerable to the information background.
“We expect the situation to stabilize in the near future. For this, the government, the Office of the President and our international partners are developing common solutions,” the ministry said.
