El Al, Arkia Stocks Surge After Foiled Plane Hijacking Attempt

Shares of Israeli airlines El Al and Arkia experienced significant gains on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange on Wednesday, following an attempted hijacking of a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv. El Al's stock rose approximately 4.8% by 11:35 AM, with Arkia also seeing a sharp increase.

The surge occurred in the wake of a dramatic incident involving Flydubai flight FZ1073, which transmitted distress signals indicating a suspected illegal intervention aboard the aircraft en route to Israel. In response, Israeli fighter jets were scrambled, and the plane diverted its course, eventually landing safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

While Flydubai initially attributed the incident to a fight between the two pilots, Israeli authorities now suspect that one pilot stabbed his colleague and attempted to hijack the plane for a terror attack. Consequently, security checks for Flydubai flights arriving at Ben Gurion Airport have been intensified.

El Al is expected to be a primary beneficiary of the situation. Flydubai is reportedly arranging for a replacement aircraft to be sent to Saudi Arabia to repatriate the passengers back to Israel.