Saudi Arabia cancels contract with company that flew airliner to Israel

Jeresulum Post ^ | 05/08/2015 | JP Staff

[Gamecock]

Saudi Arabia has terminated its contract with the Portuguese airline Hi Fly after it flew an empty jumbo jet marked with the logo of the kingdom’s national carrier, Saudia, to Ben-Gurion Airport for repairs.

The announcement was reported in the Twitter feed of a Saudi news agency.

The arrival of the jet with the logo to Ben-Gurion Airport overnight Tuesday generated a stir in the Israeli media on Wednesday after surprised airport workers spotted the plane.

The plane in question, an Airbus A330-300 devoid of passengers, arrived from Brussels to Tel Aviv for routine maintenance work with the Bedek Aviation Company, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), officials said.

A European client that works with Bedek for plane maintenance happens to lease its jets to various corporations, including Saudia, they explained.

"IAI confirmed that the Airbus came to IAI facilities in order to have maintenance work done due to an agreement that IAI has with a European company that leases the plane to Saudi Arabia," a spokeswoman for IAI told The Jerusalem Post.

Typically, routine maintenance on such planes takes about a few weeks, officials said.

Saudia – also called Saudi Arabian Airlines – is the national airline of the gulf state, based in Jeddah. Israel and Saudi Arabia do not have diplomatic relations.

[Rome2000]

These MF towel heads are going to be hurting when they no longer have an ally in the WH.

In fact, they owe us about 3 trillion dollars in REPARATIONS for 9/11.

Put Al Sharpton and Moochelle (i’s just a poor child) HUSSEIN OBAMA in charge of collecting the loot.

If they fail to make all American blacks millionaires, then just get some competent people to make it happen.

Competent people of ANY race.

[dinodino]

Good FF program and they are Skyteam, though!

[golux]

Hmm. Well Israel has always stamped U.S. Passports, unless you do not want the stamp, for obvious reasons. Second, the business of "carrying two passports" is something quite specific and let's say it should not be done casually if both Passports are US especially if there is the remotest possibility of arrest. And "forbidden" isn't really the proper word; it's merely an enhanced risk of certain negative outcomes.

[Gamecock]

Skyteam, eh?

I am a oneworld guy myself. Will be flying Delta for the first time in a couple years this Monday, eager to see if my Starwood Platinum will do anything for me through the Crossover Rewards scheme.

[SunkenCiv]

Gosh, I wonder why the plane wasn't serviced by the expert technicians in Saudi Arabia. /s