Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided that the new Israel International Airport will be built in Ziklaj in Negif. The Prime Minister issued instructions that the initial planning of the airport in Ziklag should be ready within three months. After the planning is complete, a decision on the rate of progress compared to the site in Ramat David in the north will be made, with both airports planning at the same time.
In addition, the Prime Minister ordered that the airport planning in Nevatim, also in Negev, which has begun, must move to the environmental scan, and the plans must be developed for David’s RAM, and that airports must be subject to the national infrastructure law, which means expedited planning.
Ziklag is located close to Kibbutz Beit Kama in North Negev, southern Keriat Gat, and Road 6. The area has been examined as a possible location for a new airport in the past, and has been rejected because of the airspace restrictions. It interferes with the operational tracks of the Israeli Air Force, near the borders of the Gaza Strip, and are vulnerable to the increase in the flight path network in Israel. However, the defense institution is believed to have recently eased its position, and the issue is under review again.
Airline industry sources have warned that the site is a problem and could become a white elephant like Ramon Airport near Eilat, where billions of formulas have been invested, but it does not serve its purpose. In the past, the Defense Foundation was that Zekelj was very close to the borders of the Gaza Strip, but it was recently reported that the National Security Council had reached a conclusion that there was no great danger.
The Prime Minister’s decision is an additional chapter in a long -term dispute over a new airport location to supplement Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. Until now, most professionals concerned with building an airport in Ramat David in the Jezreel Valley have recommended, but the objections from the population and local authorities in the north, and pressure from the local authorities in the south, which see the airport as an economic crane, led to the regeneration of Ziklag for alternative possibilities in Negev, initially in Nevatim, east Beersheva, now.
According to the expectations of the Israel Airports Authority, by 2040, Ben Gurion Airport will reach the maximum capacity, which is 40 million passengers annually. The airport’s expansion is not possible due to the limited airspace. Haifa Airport suffers from restrictions on its infrastructure, and it cannot deal with the size of the aircraft used in Atlantic flights.
It was published by Globes, Israel Business News – En.globes.co.il – on July 7, 2025.
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