Israel and the Philippines are moving to a new phase in their relationship as the first direct air link between Tel Aviv and Manila becomes a reality. El Al, Israel’s national carrier, has announced the launch of nonstop flights between the two capitals, creating the first direct connection in the history of bilateral ties and opening a faster corridor for tourism, business, religious pilgrimage, and labor mobility between the Middle East and Southeast Asia. The move comes on the back of sustained diplomatic work by both governments to deepen cooperation in tourism and trade, and is widely seen as a strategic step in rebuilding and expanding Israel’s links with Asian markets.
A First-Ever Direct Air Bridge Between Tel Aviv and Manila
El Al confirmed that it will introduce direct flights from Tel Aviv to Manila as part of a broader expansion that also adds routes to Hanoi and Seoul. The Tel Aviv–Manila service will operate three times weekly, using Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft, and is expected to cut travel time significantly for passengers who previously had to rely on one or two stopovers via major hubs such as Bangkok, Istanbul, Dubai, Doha, or Singapore. Flight time is projected at about 11 hours from Tel Aviv to Manila and approximately 12 hours and 20 minutes on the return leg, positioning the service as a competitive alternative to existing multi-leg itineraries.
The new route is not just a commercial decision. Israeli officials have framed the expansion into Manila as part of a wider strategy to reinforce economic and people-to-people ties with Asia after recent regional disruptions. For the Philippines, the service aligns with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s call to widen international air connectivity and tap new markets for outbound and inbound tourism. With no previous nonstop connection between the two countries, the launch is being described by both sides as a landmark in bilateral relations.
Operationally, three weekly frequencies strike a balance between testing demand and signaling long-term commitment. Airline analysts note that Dreamliner aircraft, with their range and fuel efficiency, are well suited to probing long-haul markets like Manila where there is a mix of leisure travel, religious tourism, and labor-related traffic. If load factors prove strong, an increase in frequencies or additional seasonal flights could follow, further solidifying the corridor.
Strategic Timing After Years of Diplomatic Groundwork
The announcement of direct flights follows several years of sustained diplomatic and tourism promotion efforts between Jerusalem and Manila. As early as 2024, Israel’s tourism minister and senior Philippine officials were openly discussing the need for nonstop services, linking this to the Philippines’ visa-free access to Israel for its citizens and a growing appetite among Filipinos for Holy Land pilgrimages. In 2025 and 2026, the Philippine ambassador to Israel repeatedly identified the establishment of a Tel Aviv–Manila connection as a top priority, outlining a target of lifting annual Israeli arrivals to the Philippines from around 25,000 to 35,000.
This diplomatic track ran parallel to Israel’s effort to rebuild and diversify its aviation links following the regional conflict that broke out in October 2023. Some long-haul routes into Asia were suspended or scaled back during the crisis. The new wave of launches, which includes Manila, reflects a pivot to high-potential markets where both tourism and trade can rebound quickly once reliable air links are in place. Philippine authorities, for their part, saw an opportunity to position the country as a key Southeast Asian gateway in Israel’s renewed Asia network.
The timing is also aligned with religious and cultural milestones. The Christian Jubilee Year in 2025, for example, was widely expected to spur additional global demand for pilgrimages to biblical sites in and around Israel. Philippine tourism planners and church groups had lobbied for easier access to Israel to match this anticipated surge. While the direct flights will fully materialize from 2026 onward, officials from both sides view the route as part of a longer arc of cooperation that began with joint tourism declarations and continued with airline-level negotiations and marketing partnerships.
Tourism Gains: From Holy Land Pilgrims to Beach-Seeking Israelis
Tourism stands to be one of the most immediate beneficiaries of the Israel–Philippines air link. For Filipinos, Israel has long been a coveted destination rooted in religious devotion as much as leisure. Holy Land tours that include Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, the Sea of Galilee, and the Dead Sea have persisted despite the need for complex routing through other hubs. Nonstop flights are expected to simplify these itineraries, reducing total travel time and making package tours more attractive to families, seniors, and church-based groups who may be less inclined to undertake lengthy connections.
Inbound tourism from Israel to the Philippines is also expected to grow. Even without direct flights, an estimated tens of thousands of Israelis have visited the archipelago in recent years, drawn by its tropical beaches, diving spots, and adventure tourism offerings. Philippine tourism officials point to destinations such as Palawan, Boracay, Siargao, and Cebu as particularly appealing to Israeli travelers who already favor Southeast Asia’s beach and nature circuits. Direct flights remove a layer of logistical friction and may encourage repeat visits as well as first-time travelers who previously considered the journey too cumbersome.
Travel agents in both countries are likely to respond quickly. Israeli tour operators have long offered combined Israel–Asia itineraries that string together multiple destinations on a single trip. With Manila now just one nonstop flight away, the Philippines can more easily be integrated into broader Asian routes that might include Thailand, Vietnam, or Japan. Philippine agencies, meanwhile, are expected to design new pilgrimage packages that capitalize on the convenience and symbolic weight of flying directly into Israel’s main international gateway.
Strengthening People-to-People Links and Labor Mobility
The new flights are also poised to have a deep impact on the large Filipino community living and working in Israel. More than 40,000 Filipino nationals are estimated to reside there, many employed in caregiving, domestic work, and related services. Until now, journeys home have often entailed long layovers, complicated ticketing, and higher costs due to the lack of point-to-point options. A direct Tel Aviv–Manila route gives these workers a faster and potentially more affordable way to travel, especially during holiday peaks when demand spikes.
Beyond the economics of airfares and travel time, the symbolic value of a nonstop connection is significant for families living apart. Easier travel can translate to more frequent visits, stronger family cohesion, and reduced stress for overseas Filipino workers and their relatives. Philippine authorities have consistently underlined that people are at the center of their foreign policy with Israel, recalling the historical hospitality the Philippines extended to Jewish refugees before and during the Second World War as a moral foundation for modern ties.
Student exchanges, cultural missions, and technical training programs may also benefit. Universities and training institutes that already cooperate in fields like agriculture, water management, cybersecurity, and health care can now plan delegations and study tours with greater confidence in air connectivity. For younger travelers, the presence of a direct route can be a deciding factor when choosing where to study, intern, or volunteer abroad, particularly when safety perceptions and travel time play a major role in decision-making.
Economic and Trade Opportunities Riding on the New Route
While tourism will likely grab the early headlines, the Tel Aviv–Manila flights are equally important for trade and investment flows. Bilateral merchandise trade between the Philippines and Israel is valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually, spanning sectors such as electronics, agricultural technology, defense-related equipment, water solutions, and information technology services. Reliable air cargo capacity on passenger flights gives exporters and importers new options for moving high-value, time-sensitive goods between the two markets.
Israeli businesses have shown growing interest in Southeast Asia as a destination for technology transfer, venture capital, and innovation partnerships. Cebu and other Philippine regional centers have actively courted Israeli firms in recent years, particularly in agriculture, artificial intelligence, and water management. The availability of direct flights into Manila makes side trips to secondary cities more convenient, as domestic connections can be synchronized with arrival and departure banks on the new El Al service.
For Philippine companies, especially in sectors like business process outsourcing, electronics, and agrifood products, the direct link can facilitate business missions and investor roadshows in Israel, as well as quicker in-person engagement when negotiating contracts or piloting joint ventures. With the airline positioning the new Asian routes as a solution for business travelers, corporate travel departments on both sides are likely to shift some traffic away from indirect routings in favor of the nonstop option.
Air Connectivity as a Tool of Foreign Policy and Regional Positioning
The decision to open direct flights also carries a clear geopolitical dimension. For Israel, reconnecting and expanding its Asian network is part of a broader effort to diversify strategic partnerships and mitigate the impact of regional shocks on tourism and trade. Manila joins a roster of Asian capitals that increasingly anchor Israel’s diplomatic and economic outreach beyond its immediate neighborhood. Being among the first Southeast Asian capitals to secure a direct El Al service gives the Philippines added weight in Israel’s Asia strategy.
For the Philippines, the route enhances its profile as a regional aviation hub and a bridge between different parts of Asia and the Middle East. The country has been pursuing an aggressive aviation liberalization and infrastructure agenda, including expanded airport capacity around Manila and in key tourism gateways. Direct flights from Tel Aviv complement new and existing routes from Gulf carriers, European airlines, and Asian partners, helping to position the Philippines not only as a destination in its own right but also as a convenient transfer point for niche markets.
Diplomats and policy analysts note that transport corridors often deepen bilateral relations in ways that go beyond official agreements. Regular flights create a predictable rhythm of visits by business leaders, academics, artists, and tourists, which in turn can lead to new memorandums of understanding, city-to-city partnerships, and joint initiatives in areas such as climate resilience, innovation, and culture. The Tel Aviv–Manila link is expected to feed into this virtuous cycle, reinforcing existing defense, development, and humanitarian cooperation between the two nations.
Challenges, Competition, and the Road Ahead
Despite the optimism surrounding the launch, the new route will operate in a complex environment marked by security concerns, fluctuating travel demand, and stiff competition from established hub carriers. Regional tensions and global economic uncertainty can quickly affect traveler confidence, especially for long-haul routes. El Al and Philippine tourism authorities will need to coordinate closely on safety messaging, flexible booking policies, and crisis response protocols to maintain passenger trust.
Competition from Gulf, Turkish, and Asian network carriers is another factor. These airlines already offer one-stop connections between Tel Aviv and Manila via major hubs, sometimes with aggressive pricing and extensive onward networks. The advantage of nonstop convenience will have to be clearly communicated through marketing campaigns and reinforced by consistent service quality. Travel agents will play a pivotal role in steering customers toward or away from the new route, depending on pricing, schedules, and perceived reliability.
There are also operational questions about seasonality and demand patterns. Pilgrimage traffic from the Philippines may be highly concentrated around religious holidays and specific church-organized tours, while labor and family travel tends to spike around Christmas and the Philippine summer. Israeli leisure travel to the Philippines may peak during Israel’s winter months, when tropical destinations are most attractive. Managing these demand swings while maintaining healthy load factors will test route planning and revenue management teams on both sides.
A New Era in Philippines–Israel Relations
Even with these challenges, the launch of direct Tel Aviv–Manila flights is widely viewed as a watershed in Philippines–Israel relations. It transforms a relationship that has long relied on shared history, migrant labor, and episodic tourism into one supported by a tangible, regular air bridge. The symbolism is powerful: two democracies, separated by thousands of kilometers and distinct geopolitical contexts, opting to bring their people closer through a direct connection that did not exist for decades.
Over time, the success of the route will be measured not only in passenger numbers and profit margins, but also in the diversification of ties it supports. More Filipino pilgrims walking Jerusalem’s ancient streets, more Israeli backpackers surfing in Siargao, more joint ventures in agritech and cybersecurity, and more families reuniting with less strain and cost are all part of the wider promise. Aviation, in this sense, becomes both a reflection and a driver of maturing bilateral relations.
As the first planes trace a new line across the map between Tel Aviv and Manila, officials and travelers alike will be watching closely. If the route proves durable, it could pave the way for additional services, code-share agreements, and perhaps even future involvement from Philippine carriers. For now, it marks a clear statement of intent: Israel and the Philippines are not only reaffirming their friendship in words and diplomatic communiqués, they are wiring it directly into the global air network, with all the opportunities that come with it.