While foreign airlines were delaying resuming flights to Israel, Blue Bird saw the potential and resumed operations at Ben Gurion Airport in February. The Iranian attack in April also failed to deter the Greek-registered, Israeli-owned tanker, partially filling the void left by foreign tankers.
Blue Bird currently operates flights from Tel Aviv to 14 destinations in the Mediterranean and Europe. The company owns three Boeing 737-800 aircraft, and its main activity is flights from Tel Aviv to Greece, with routes to four different destinations in the country.
Blue Bird says it's business as usual despite the war. In fact, since the beginning of the war, Blue Bird has become more popular among Israeli travelers. Israel Airports Authority data shows that in April, Blue Bird was one of the most popular airlines in Israel, with a market share of 5.15% of passengers (about 60,000). This brought it to fifth place, behind El Al, Israir, Arkia, and the Hungarian low-cost carrier Wizz Air. In April 2023, Blue Bird carried nearly 50,000 passengers representing a 2.4% market share at Ben Gurion Airport.
It is not surprising that the Greek airline performed very strongly in Israel. Even during previous operations in Gaza, Blue Bird continued its regular flights to Israel, while most airlines preferred to stop their flights. Last October, the company operated rescue flights for Israelis who needed to report for reserve duty.
Blue Bird's loyalty to Israel is no coincidence. The Greek company was acquired in 2016 by the owners of Kavei Hufsha (Vacation Lines), one of the largest companies in the tourism industry in Israel, owned by Ami Cohen and Arnon Englander.
There are still challenges
Blue Bird is not the only airline owned by the Israeli tourism group. In January, Kavei Hufsha bought a 33% stake in Cyprus-based airline TUS, which it owns in partnership with Global Knafaim.
Kavi Hofsha confirms that Blue Bird is essentially a Greek airline with Greek employees, and its headquarters is in Heraklion on the island of Crete, and that its Israeli ownership is not the reason behind the company doing significant business with Israel, but rather the reason behind the high demand.
However, the Greek-Israeli alliance is not without complications, and as with other foreign companies, once there is a deterioration in the security situation, it also faces familiar challenges, including rising insurance premiums and cabin crews refusing to fly here. . But since this is a short-haul airline that flies to nearby destinations, in most cases the crew and aircraft do not need to stay in Israel.
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In recent weeks, there have been many complaints from groups of travelers about changes in the company's schedules. But Blue Bird insists that “the postponement of flights was only after the Iranian attack, due to the situation, and we still continue to operate flights from Ben Gurion Airport every day. There are restrictions that lead to changes, and our desires are not always linked to the security reality in The State of Israel, and by the way, this applies to every Israeli and foreign airline operating in Israel since last October.
Other complaints from passengers about the airline include, regarding the baggage policy, where the weight allowance is not clear, so passengers discover extra charges at the last minute. Blue Bird insists that “the baggage issue is very clear and listed in three languages (including Hebrew) on the website and in all Blue Bird sales channels. All that is required of passengers is to arrive at the airport with the baggage according to the terms of the purchased ticket.”
A phenomenon known all over the world
According to Israeli aviation and tourism expert Yossi Fisher, it is less common in Israel for tourism companies to acquire airlines, while this is a well-known phenomenon in the world. For example, Germany's TUI, the world's largest tourism company, has five different airlines. Another company working on a similar model is Thomas Cook & Sons, which was the first major travel company of the modern era, but went bankrupt in 2019. When it was operating, Thomas Cook owned Condor Airlines, the second largest company in Germany, which Today she works independently.
“Once you have the ability as a company to provide plane seats, you will have the possibility of earning more and controlling the entire tourist chain, bringing in and taking out tourists. In a country like Israel, which is considered an island country, where it is impossible to travel by train to another country, it is An aviation arm with the ability to operate in tourism offers a very significant comparative advantage in the market,” says Fisher. “In the case of Blue Bird and TUS, once you have companies with a European operating license flying in the Mediterranean region, there is a huge advantage because the company Operates on Saturdays and holidays. This meets a very serious shortage of demand on Saturdays. Holidays, which are not provided by Israeli airlines, make big money precisely during these times.”
Agents are not relevant
Today's travel agents realize that clients can manage their own affairs. Fisher points out that agencies no longer define themselves as agents, but rather as travel advisors. “The systems are simple and easy, and almost anyone can buy a plane ticket with five clicks,” he says. “I think this is one of the professions that will disappear from the world.”
Fisher adds that airlines have cut agent commissions, so they are selling packages. “Companies sell packages and not just their own,” says Fisher. “Other agents also hold seats on flights. At Blue Bird, for example, Arkia owns part of the seats on a plane to Athens, and its competitor ISSTA holds another part.” “. . “There are also many small agents who do not buy offers themselves, but buy ready-made offers from travel companies. This is the solution to the changing needs of the market.”
ISSTA's Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tali Noe, believes that despite everything, travel agents are not going away anytime soon. “Travel agents operate both online and offline. We thought the world of travel agents was disappearing, but in fact it has become stronger and taken on a new configuration. Since Covid, the number of travel agents has become small, but the agents that exist have become much smaller, the volume of work among them has increased, and the average An agent's salary is between 30% and 40% who will take care of their money, and above all they want a travel agent who knows how to tailor things to them. I see the agency world getting stronger, especially in sectors that require specialization, such as holiday packages, cruises and sports holidays.”
Published by Globes, Israel Business News – en.globes.co.il – on May 30, 2024.
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