Arkia CEO: Wet-Leased Flights Lack Shin Bet Security Envelope

The Thwarted Cockpit Takeover over Israeli Airspace

An attempted hijacking aboard a flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv has exposed extensive security gaps governing foreign and wet-leased civilian aircraft entering Israeli airspace, as Israeli authorities grapple with conflicting official responsibilities and mounting political fallout.

Foreign Crews Flying Under the Radar

The security crisis deepened when The Times of Israel reported that a significant majority of flights ostensibly operated by Israeli carriers Arkia and Israir actually utilize aircraft and crews leased from foreign airlines. In July 2026, 70 percent of Arkia’s flights and 56 percent of Israir’s flights operated under this "wet lease" arrangement, compared to just 5 percent for Sun D’Or.

Unlike genuinely Israeli aircraft, these wet-leased flights do not receive a security envelope from the Shin Bet when operating from overseas. Arkia CEO Oz Berlowitz confirmed that instead of Shin Bet oversight, those flights rely entirely on the security measures administered at foreign airports. Such flights lack the additional passenger profiling, security checks, and onboard Israeli security personnel required on standard Israeli flights.

Israir defended the practice in a statement reported by The Times of Israel, maintaining that its wet-lease operations comply with Israeli regulations under a risk management policy approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Regev Denies Responsibility for Vetting Foreign Airline Crews

Signed by Avri Cohen, head of the ministry’s security division, the directive mandates on-site audits and recurring compliance assessments.

However, Transportation Minister Miri Regev maintained that her ministry is not an intelligence agency and holds no responsibility for vetting foreign airline crews or screening intelligence data, placing that burden on security services. Regev’s stance drew sharp criticism and calls for her resignation from opposition leaders, including Yashar chairman Gadi Eisenkot and Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman.

Netanyahu Orders Security Review of Foreign Civil Aviation

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directed Shmuel Ben-Ezra, head of the National Security Council, to appoint an overseer to review all security aspects of foreign civil aviation entering Israel. The review is slated to present findings on the structural flaws that allowed the flydubai co-pilot into the cockpit.

Simultaneously, the security cabinet is scheduled to convene to examine the ongoing joint investigation being conducted by the Mossad, the Shin Bet, and authorities in the United Arab Emirates.