The Boeing 737 cargo plane received an Israeli registration starting with the letters 4X, and it joins El Al’s aircraft fleet. The new plane was given the name “Otaf Israel”. (His call sign is “Eco-Kilo-Zebra”)
The debut flight of “Otaf Israel” took off yesterday (Tuesday) to Frankfurt and received the number LY221 in the outward direction, and the flight number LY222 in the return direction – with the geometry “Together we will win”.
“Otaf Israel” is a cargo plane that was converted from a passenger plane a few months ago. The plane has a carrying capacity of about 20 tons of cargo in each direction, and it will make two daily flights to different destinations in Europe. It will allow the increase of the cargo capacity that the company flies.
At the same time, against the background of the fighting in Israel and in response to essential needs, El Al is making adjustments to the Boeing 777 aircraft to operate it also for cargo flights, by temporarily removing the passenger seats. The plane will have a capacity of between 25 and 50 tons of cargo per flight.
Also, as part of the increase in cargo flights to Israel, the “Jerusalem of Gold” Dreamliner aircraft landed in Mumbai, India, on Tuesday, after a four-year hiatus since an El Al aircraft landed in India. The plane was loaded with a lot of cargo that will arrive in Israel.
Since the outbreak of war, El Al has also increased the cargo capacity of its wide-body passenger planes for the purpose of transporting equipment in accordance with the security situation in Israel and has flown more than 5,000 tons of cargo, including medical and essential equipment, some of which was donated by various organizations in Israel and around the world.
Among other things, special flights were operated to fly equipment that included first aid kits and additional medical equipment, as well as cargo that included thermal clothing for IDF soldiers and equipment purchased for the families of the besieged, and this was funded by the Phoenix Group and the Pillars Organization. On one of the cargo flights, pictures of the abductees were attached to the seats as a symbol and hope for their return to Israel soon.
El Al’s CEO Dina Ben Tal Gnansia: “After flying about a quarter of a million passengers to and from Israel in the first two weeks of fighting and increasing the flight schedule, we are preparing for the next challenges. With the decrease in demand for passenger flights, the need to fly cargo has increased. Until now, El Al has relied on cargo capacity In the passenger planes and the dedicated cargo planes, and in light of the national need, we added the “Otaf Israel” plane to the fleet and began the process of adapting a wide-body plane to fly cargo. El Al is proud to be the bridge that connects Israel to the world. We will continue to carry out every mission as the airline that carries the Israeli flag on the tails of its planes “.
