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Continental to fly to Israel even if Iraq war starts
Reuters
Monday February 17, 5:02 AM EST
JERUSALEM, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Continental Airlines (CAL), the fifth-largest
U.S. airline, said on Monday it plans to continue flying to and from Israel
even in the event of war breaking out in Iraq.
During the 1991 Gulf War, foreign airlines stopped flying to Israel and
other Middle East destinations, and many industry experts expect the same
will happen again, prompted by higher insurance rates, if war breaks out.
"In the event of hostilities in the Gulf region, Continental plans to
continue operating... Provided that Israel's airspace remains open, we
remain convinced it is safe to do so for our customers and employees and
appropriate insurance is available," the airline said in a statement.
Continental said it did not expect insurance to be a problem since "war risk
insurance provided by the United States is available".
Continental and Israeli flagship carrier El Al [ELAL.UL] are the only
airlines providing non-stop flights to the New York area. Continental flies
the Tel Aviv-New York/Newark route daily using Boeing 777 aircraft.
El Al is expected to continue flying if war breaks out since the Israeli
government will provide insurance.
©2003 Reuters Limited.
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