JERUSALEM, Jan 8 (Reuters) – Israel’s Arkia Airlines said on Thursday it signed a deal with low-cost U.S. carrier JetBlue Airways that would allow its customers to connect on JetBlue flights in the United States and to Latin America and the Caribbean.
Privately held Arkia mainly flies domestically and to Europe but it launched flights from Tel Aviv to New York a year ago in competition with its larger rival and flag carrier El Al Israel Airlines.
Under the so-called interline agreement, Arkia’s flight schedule of up to seven weekly non-stop flights to JFK Airport will be linked with JetBlue’s destination network.
“This agreement adds a significant layer to strengthening Arkia’s long-haul operations and expanding the range of services for customers travelling to North America,” said Arkia CEO Oz Berlowitz.
Dave Jehn, a vice president at JetBlue, the sixth-largest airline in the United States, said the new partnership with Arkia “allows us to expand our global reach and provides customers with a wider range of destinations and seamless connections between flights.”
El Al also has an interline agreement with JetBlue but a codeshare deal between the airlines ended in October.
(Reporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by Susan Fenton)
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