The Vaad Limishmeres Shabbos, made up of leading Gedolim (R’ Eliyashiv, R’ AL Shteinman, Chacham Ovadia etc), called on the public to “distance themselves from El Al, which has harmed the holy Shabbos. Last evening Hagoen R’ Chaim Kanievsky Shlita stated that it’s “Pikuach Nefashos to fly with El Al”.
(This morning an El Al flight to NYC -which had quite a few Rabbonim, Roshei Yeshivos and Askonim on board – made an emergency landing in Tel Aviv 45 minutes after take off. Many frantic people began calling R’ Chaim to find out what they should do. They were told to “get off the plane”!! They tried to explain to R’ Chaim that they must get back to NYC today, so he advised them to call R’ AL Shteinman who said “since you are Shliuchei Mitzvah – you can fly, but MUST take care of your Shlichus as soon as you land in NYC!)
The committee was responding to the airline’s authorization of a flight from Miami to Eretz Yisroel this past Shabbos. The flight was meant to make up for lost time caused by the strike that took place on Wednesday and caused a cancellation of flights from Ben-Gurion Airport.
The committee was preparing to deliver a message to the public over the following days, detailing which steps should be taken regarding the airline.
El Al “has alienated the haredi community” said the secretary for the Rabbinical Council, Rabbi Yithcok Goldknopf, in an interview with Army Radio.
“They didn’t want to desecrate the strike, but they had no problem desecrating Shabbos,” said Goldknopf.
Regarding alternatives to flying with El Al, the rabbi said that there are different companies, “foreign and Jewish, that want to form ties with us… If [the companies] know that the Charedi communities in Eretz Yisreol and in the Diaspora support them, they will increase efforts to please the Charedi community.”
Tourism Minister Isaac Herzog, in response, asked the Charedi community not to boycott the company, which had been “trapped” and had no other choice but to fly on Shabbos.
“El Al should not be punished because we live in a competitive world, and this must be understood,” said Herzog.
El Al was expected to meet with representatives of the Charedi community in order to discuss the recent turn of events.
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14 Responses
I respectfully recommend that we notify El Al directly regarding our disapproval of their desecration of the Shabbos. Their e-mail address is [email protected]. Their Web site is at http://www.elal.co.il.
This is what i wrote. Feel free to copy.
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I have always given preference to El Al.
If you are taking a step backwards and desecrating Shabbos, then on what will my loyalties be based.
Because you serve half a piece of lox sometimes?
Or because travelers who book with El Al and fly with a partner company are fed non-kosher?
Or is it because you are less accommodating to davening than other airlines?
Must be because you pack them in like sardines.
Bottom line, you mess with Shabbos, you mess with me.
A customer
To YW editor
I have a ticket with El Al for February, already paid for.
Please find out if i need to throw it away.
Time to invest in Israir’s stock 🙂
I don’t get it.
Why would we run to Israir, who were always mechalel Shabbos, from ELAL who at least made an effort not to be, most of the time? Because this one time they weren’t? Sure, that’s not good, but Israir NEVER did.
I agree with Shtender. I was looking to book a flight to America and couldn’t believe when I saw that the only flight Israir had on Saterday is at 3:30pm. Go Continental!!!
I don’t understand. What was the emergency landing about and why were people frantic to get off? Why were they not hesitant to get on in the first place? Was everybody who needed to get to New York a Shliach Mitzvah.
AS a travel agent (lo aleichem) I can only tell you that people who already paid for non-refundable tickets with El Al can stand to incur haevy losses.
Please keep us updated
i think we should start a frum airline!!
just like when the lakewood bus violated shabbos, people started darkanu,
(the only FRUM bus company in lakwood).
Flying Continental doesn’t either solve the problem because although they may not be jewish, all the workers that need to tend to their flights arriving and departing on Shabbos from Ben Gurion are jewish. The only option we really have is to broker a deal with them saying we’ll use them exclusively if they agree not to fly on Shabbos. Until then, it seems like the Charedi public will have to either stay put, or find another mode of transportation. SHIPS AHOY!!
where is lakwood?
I think we should do what our grandparents did….boat….walked…bike….motorcycle….roller blades….skateboard…scooters…You see, my grandparents didn’t either fly elal-i think it was because the food wasn’t great….Lol…
Dear El Al,
I read with disgust concerning your recent desecration of Shabbos. Although I flew with your airline on my recent trip before Pesach, I will not be using your airline again this summer pending the ruling of our sages in Yerushalayim. It’s sad to see history repeating itself. Unfortunately, your company is more concerned with the bottom line than our holy Shabbos. Hopefully, one day you will realize that your existence (as well as that of the state of Israel) is based on miracles. Although you desperately try to deny this, thank goodness there are hundreds of thousands who don’t – as will be evident in the empty El Al planes that will be flying to Israel from now on.
Dan
Who wants to even hear El Al’s “message to the public”? I’m just not comfortable flying with a company which has no appreciation for the constant nissim which have made their awesom safety record a reality.
I agree with the person who said we should start a proper Jewish airline.
We should daven that all El Al workers, managers, and executives do teshuva shleima (and that we also should do teshuva shleima), and that Hashem should somehow arrange this whole affair in such a way that His Name be sanctified among all Jews, and that the glory of His Torah and mitzvos be enhanced among all the peoples of the world.