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Air Transat celebrates historic flights to Tel Aviv
Some 200 elected officials, business community leaders and tourism partners gathered last week at the Montreal Science Centre to celebrate Air Transat’s first flight between Montreal and Tel Aviv, which will take off June 18.
May 5, 2017 By Air Transat
Among those in attendance were Lionel Perez, member of the executive committee of the City of Montreal, Uri Steinberg, consul and Israel tourism commissioner for North America, and Philippe Rainville, president and chief executive officer of Aéroports de Montréal.
The event was co-presided by Jean-Marc Eustache, founder and president and chief executive officer, Transat A.T. Inc., and Ziv Nevo Kulman, consul general of Israel and permanent representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
“We will be offering our customers a historic moment with a capital ‘H’ this summer,” said Eustache, reminding guests that Transat, one of the world’s largest integrated tourism companies, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Eustache also took the opportunity to state his belief that tourism is the future.
“Tourism demand in Canada exceeded $91 billion in 2016, generating some 720,000 jobs,” he said. “We are proud to be making a significant contribution to the development and growth of this economic sector.”
For his part, Kulman noted: “Since Air Transat’s announcement of a direct flight linking Montreal with Tel Aviv, we have seen a dramatic increase in interest for Israel as a tourist destination and eagerly welcome this wonderful opportunity to welcome thousands of passengers from Canada to our country. This direct air link presents travellers with an ideal chance to discover the riches of the Holy Land, the beauty of its landscapes and the diversity of its peoples, as well as the chance for Israelis to enjoy the 150th and 375th anniversary festivities in Canada and Montreal.”
“The air link announced by Air Transat is good news for the Québec economy. The exchanges made possible by the new link between Israel and Québec, particularly for tourists, can only benefit our destination,” added Julie Boulet, minister of tourism and minister responsible for the Mauricie region.”
Yariv Levin, Israeli Minister of Tourism, added: “I welcome the decision by Transat to open a route into Israel with the co-operation and support of the Tourism Ministry. Transat joins a lengthy list of airlines that are opening new direct routes to Israel and view Israel as an attractive tourism destination. This is a vote of confidence in the Israeli tourism product and I am convinced that the new route will be a success.”
“Last November, I was privileged to lead a major trade mission to Israel. I could see how well our economies and our businesses complemented each other. Montréal and Tel Aviv are major centres of research and innovation, as well as popular destinations for business, tourism and leisure. This new direct air link underlines the importance of the business, tourism and community relationships between Montréal and Israel. I am convinced this new direct flight will be a success, and that it will further stimulate trade and tourism between Montréal and Israel” indicated Denis Coderre, mayor of Montreal.
The new city-pair will be flown by a 332-seat Airbus A330-300 aircraft. Transat will offer its customers 28 transatlantic destinations — Tel Aviv and 27 European centres— for the summer of 2017.
