Israeli Aviation Official Advised Airlines He Oversees

A new controversy has erupted in Israel's aviation security system concerning potential conflicts of interest and the effectiveness of oversight for foreign airlines. Dvir Rubinstein, who directs the Aviation Security Operations Center at the Ministry of Transport, provided paid consulting and training to Fly Dubai and Emirates. These are the same airlines whose security operations and approvals fall under his public responsibility. Rubinstein, who operates as an outsourced contractor through a private company rather than a direct state employee, traveled to the UAE to train staff from these airlines. He then returned to Israel and continued to make decisions regarding security permits for them, according to a report by N12.

Despite advance transmission of crew and passenger lists from UAE authorities to Israel, no prior warning regarding this co-pilot was detected. While Rubinstein publicly praised the rigorous background check model used in the United States for foreign crews before departure, in private discussions he has stated that the Ministry of Transport is not an intelligence agency and relies on airline self-declarations. Neither the Ministry of Transport nor Rubinstein provided a response to the allegations regarding payments received.