The El Al board of directors met in special session yesterday even though it has no legal status. But temporary receiver Amram Blum, who has been managing the company since it was closed down by the government last year, said he wanted to brief the board on recent developments, as he thought the airline was recovering sufficiently to enable him to hand management back to the directors shortly.
Transport Minister Haim Corfu noted that the airline appeared to be recovering faster than had been anticipated and was winning back passengers who had been attracted to other carriers by the El Al breakdown.
Corfu said El Al losses this year would amount to some $60 million, half of it due to the government ban on the Israeli airline flying on the Sabbath and Jewish holidays. He indicated the government would cover the losses due to this move. Another $30 million loss is reported to be due to debt repayments.
Critics of the government have suggested that one way of covering extra expenditure in payment to doctors after their strike is to allow to airline to fly a normal seven day week, thus wiping out the $30 million dollar Shabat loss on income.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
