Israir Wins Appeal Over Compensation for 5.5-Hour Flight Delay

Jerusalem District Court Judge Tamar Bar-Asher accepted Israir’s appeal and overturned a small-claims ruling that had ordered the airline to pay two passengers about 16,070 shekels in compensation, plus 5,000 shekels in costs to the state. The passengers had bought tickets worth only about 1,190 shekels for a charter flight originally scheduled for September 2025.

A day before departure, Israir canceled the original flight because of the security situation and placed the passengers on a replacement flight that left about 5.5 hours later than planned. The passengers chose not to take that alternative and asked to cancel their purchase, receiving a full refund through the travel agency. They then sued for about 29,000 shekels, and the small-claims court awarded them compensation, including 10,000 shekels in statutory damages.

The district court said the Aviation Services Law treats a flight as canceled only if it does not operate at all or departs at least eight hours late. Because the replacement flight left less than eight hours after the scheduled time, the judge ruled, “it cannot be said that their flight was canceled.” On that basis, the passengers were not entitled to compensation.

Bar-Asher also said the lower court’s total award, about 21,000 shekels, was “unreasonable and disproportionate” for a 5.5-hour delay on tickets costing 1,190 shekels. The court noted that costs to the state are reserved for exceptional cases and said there was serious doubt they were justified here. Israir’s lawyer, Liora Gaz, welcomed the ruling, while one passenger said it would encourage airlines not to protect customers’ interests.