Israel Begins Repatriation of Citizens Stranded By Iran Strikes
Authorities are rationing flights as a precaution, wary that aircraft could be threatened by incoming missile barrages.
The first planeload landed Wednesday at Ben Gurion Airport, Israel's main international gateway, bringing Israelis from Cyprus, where many had traveled from other locations to find an opportunity to return home. Two cruise ships are also under contract to bring people from the island, Transport Minister Miri Regev said.
Israel says as many as 150,000 of its citizens were traveling abroad when it launched a surprise assault on Iranian nuclear and military targets on Friday, triggering an unprecedented exchange of fire.
The rescue mission could take weeks at the current rate of return — 2,500 people a day by air, and around the same number by sea. When the tickets were offered online on Tuesday, they were grabbed within minutes, Israeli media outlets said.
'There's no reason to get stressed,' Regev said in a news conference, her remarks addressed to Israelis unable to return home. 'You're abroad. Have a good time. I know this is no simple matter.'
Israel dispatched much of its civilian airline fleet abroad after fighting began, recalling some aircraft only after aviation risks had eased enough to permit a limited return to daytime operations.
But Ben Gurion, outside Tel Aviv, and a smaller airport in the northern city of Haifa that is also partly operating, are still seen as potential targets for Iran.
To discourage crowding, Israelis are banned from departing by air, with possible exceptions for medical or family emergencies, Regev said.
Overland travel through neighboring Jordan or Egypt is possible, though Israel has issued a terrorism advisory against using those routes.
Some private yacht owners have been offering to take Israelis to or from Cyprus, a 30-hour trip usually priced at around $1,000.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
08-08-2025
- First Post
US warns of threats to Jewish, Israeli communities in UAE, urges caution
'The Mission urges US citizens to avoid locations in the UAE associated with the Jewish and Israeli communities, including places of worship,' US Mission to UAE said in a statement read more The United States mission to the United Arab Emirates said on Friday it was aware of information indicating threats towards the Jewish and Israeli communities in the UAE. The U.S. Mission to the United Arab Emirates is aware of information indicating threats toward the Jewish and Israeli communities in the UAE. The Mission urges U.S. citizens to avoid locations in the UAE associated with the Jewish and Israeli communities, including places of… — US Mission to UAE (@USAinUAE) August 8, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In a statement, the mission urged US citizens to avoid locations associated with these communities, including places of worship, due to the elevated threat environment. Americans in the UAE are advised to stay informed through the State Department's travel website, which includes Travel Warnings and Country-Specific Information. The Mission also recommended enrolling in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive real-time security updates and facilitate emergency assistance. For assistance regarding US citizens abroad, the State Department can be reached at +1-888-407-4747 (toll-free in the U.S. and Canada) or +1-202-501-4444 from overseas. On July 31, Israel's National Security Headquarters upgraded its travel warning for Israelis in the Gulf country, saying: 'terrorist organisations are operating with increased intensity these days in efforts to harm Israel'. With inputs from agencies
Time of India
05-08-2025
- Time of India
Delta's AI fare strategy: Cheaper flights or high-tech price hikes?
Delta Air Lines is changing how ticket prices are decided by letting artificial intelligence take the wheel. In a bold move, the airline is using AI to help determine airfare on some U.S. domestic routes. While only about 3 per cent of flights are currently covered, Delta plans to expand this AI pricing system to 20 per cent by the end of 2025. This new approach replaces traditional fare setting methods with real time pricing decisions, based on data like travel demand, competitor prices, and booking trends. Delta says the system developed by Israeli tech firm Fetcherr is already boosting revenue and efficiency. How it works: AI-powered dynamic pricing Delta's AI system, developed by Israeli startup Fetcherr, analyzes a wide range of data in real time such as demand trends, market fluctuations, booking pace, and competitor pricing. Rather than using static fare charts, the AI suggests optimal prices that can adapt instantly to changing conditions. Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program Delta President Glen Hauenstein called it a 'reengineering' of pricing science and noted early trials have led to 'amazingly favorable unit revenues,' a metric used to gauge profitability per seat. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Play War Thunder now for free War Thunder Play Now Undo Concerns over fairness and transparency Despite Delta's optimism, the move has sparked concern among lawmakers and consumer advocates. Senators Mark Warner, Richard Blumenthal, and Ruben Gallego sent a letter to the airline questioning whether AI driven fare decisions could lead to " surveillance pricing ." Their concern: that AI might use personal data to charge individuals based on their perceived willingness to pay. Delta responds: No personal data used Delta has firmly denied using personal information to set prices. In a statement, the airline clarified that it does not use browsing history, financial details, or customer profiles. Instead, pricing is based on anonymized market data and traditional travel factors like origin, destination, date, seat class, and refundability. 'All customers have access to the same fares,' a Delta spokesperson emphasized. Live Events A broader trend in air travel? Industry analysts suggest this is just the beginning. As airlines compete for profitability in a volatile market, many are likely to adopt AI tools to gain an edge. While dynamic pricing isn't new, the speed and granularity offered by AI raises concerns about fairness and transparency. Consumer rights groups are keeping a close eye on the issue. A new bill in Congress, called the Stop AI Price Gouging and Wage Fixing Act, seeks to ban the use of consumer profiling in pricing and could impact how AI tools like these are used in the future. FAQs Q1. What is Delta's AI pricing system? A1. Delta is using artificial intelligence to set ticket prices based on real-time market data. The system is designed to optimize fares depending on demand, competition, and booking trends. Q2. How could AI-based pricing affect travelers? A2. Travelers may see more frequent changes in fares based on demand and timing. It might get harder to know when you're getting the best deal.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
04-08-2025
- First Post
No more cheap flights? AI pricing can take ticket costs to your personal 'pain point' payment
In contrast to pricing strategies of the past (think: yield management, seasonal variation, and advance purchase discounts), AI could use predictive behavioural manipulation– taking what it knows of the consumer and warping the price accordingly read more Using AI to determine the highest a customer is willing to pay for a particular flight ticket could mean each individual paying the most their pocket will allow: a probable end to the concept of "cheap flight tickets". Image for Representation A recent white paper authored by Uri Yerushalmi, chief AI officer and co-founder of Israeli software firm Fetcherr, has revealed a potentially transformative and controversial approach to airline pricing. The document, circulated among prospective clients, outlines a pilot AI-driven pricing model already tested by an unnamed airline. The system, modelled on generative AI principles, replaces traditional fare structures with a labyrinthine array of dynamically shifting price classes, aimed at maximising yield well beyond human cognitive processing. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD To call this merely dynamic pricing is to understate the scale of the change. Airlines have long tinkered with fare variability, but what Fetcherr proposes enters a new domain where AI not only responds to market signals but generates its own version of them, simulating demand and adjusting fares in real time. 'Exploitation phase,' Yerushalmi wrote with little subtlety, according to a Bloomberg report. In contrast to pricing strategies of the past (think: yield management, seasonal variation, and advance purchase discounts) what Fetcherr is offering now is closer to predictive behavioural manipulation. It takes what it knows of the consumer, or of consumers like them, and warps price accordingly. In that moment, the ticket, instead of being a commodity, becomes a wager on how badly you need to get home during a festival or how much you're willing to stretch for a weekend with family. Delta Air Lines has already begun integrating Fetcherr's platform into its operations. At its July earnings call, President Glen Hauenstein disclosed that the company had deployed the system across 3 per cent of its domestic routes, with an ambition to scale that to 20 per cent by year-end. 'We like what we see,' Hauenstein said, describing the initiative as being in a 'heavy testing phase.' Perhaps relieving to many flyers is the fact that at least lawmakers have been swift and unforgiving in responding to the proposal. Arizona Senator Ruben Gallego, backed by other Democrats, sent a letter to Delta CEO Ed Bastian warning of 'data privacy concerns' and the potential to push consumers toward their individual 'pain point.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Republican Senator Josh Hawley called Delta's system 'the worst thing I have heard from the already awful airline industry.' Democratic Congressman Greg Casar introduced a bill that would outlaw 'surveillance pricing.' It's not hard to see why the backlash is bipartisan. Americans may grumble about security lines or seat widths, but airfare pricing has long remained an opaque ritual they grudgingly accept. Now, however, it seems that ritual may be gamified, and by a machine, no less. The suggestion that airlines could price seats not by value, but by what each person can endure, ignites deeper fears about the commodification of necessity. Where that lies on the scale of ethics is anyone's guess. Delta Air Lines has tried to reassure critics. In a July 31 letter to Gallego, the airline's chief external affairs officer Peter Carter described Fetcherr's software as a 'decision-support tool' that analysts 'oversee and fine-tune.' He stressed that pricing recommendations move 'in both directions,' and said there were 'no fare product[s] Delta has ever used, is testing or plans to use that targets customers with individualized prices based on personal data.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Yet earlier statements muddy the waters. In a blog post from 2024, since scrubbed from Fetcherr's website, the company forecasted a future of 'individualized pricing' based on behavioural indicators like purchase history and the 'real-time context of each booking inquiry.' The blog positioned this as a vision, not a current reality, and acknowledged that privacy laws could constrain implementation. We're living in the golden age of algorithmic nudging, and if pricing is becoming personal, it's also becoming intimate. AI is not only learning what we want, it's also figuring out how much we'll suffer to get it. In an earnings event last November, Delta's Hauenstein suggested exactly this. 'Could we take a $20 increase in our fares and not see a decline in market share? Could we take a $40?' he mused, adding, 'We will have a price that's available on that flight, on that time to you, the individual.' Other airlines have expressed concern. American Airlines CEO Robert Isom, speaking on his company's earnings call, called AI-driven pricing 'bait and switch' and 'unethical.' 'It's not something we would do,' he stated. Southwest Airlines has also clarified that it does not rely on artificial intelligence to set fares. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The irony is that even while these airlines distance themselves from the practice, they may soon find themselves pulled into it. 'The Holy Grail,' as Deutsche Bank managing director Michael Linenberg put it, is 'meeting each and every individual's personal demand curve.' That is the vision, the dream: the perfect, profitable equilibrium where every customer pays exactly what they can be stretched to pay.
