Israel's restriction on US military aircraft at Ben Gurion airport sparks concern in Washington

The Israeli Transportation Ministry's decision on Tuesday to bar additional U.S. aerial refueling aircraft from landing at Ben Gurion International Airport has sparked concern in Washington, according to Ynet News. The report said senior U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) officials quickly contacted senior Israel Defense Forces officers in an effort to reverse the decision. According to Ynet, the IDF supports the U.S. position.

“The American demand is justified. The refueling aircraft are a strategic asset of the United States in the region, and they are an integral part of the joint preparations against Iran. From an operational standpoint, it is important that they be able to operate under the conditions set by the Americans,” a senior military official told Ynet.

The reported dispute comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran. The U.S. military has struck Iranian military targets for three consecutive nights, while U.S. President Donald Trump has reinstated a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz in response to Iranian attacks on civilian vessels and Tehran's refusal to reopen the strategic waterway unconditionally.

The controversy is linked to tensions between military and civilian needs. Israeli officials have warned that the prominent presence of U.S. military aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport threatens to cause mass cancellations of civilian flights during the peak summer travel months.

“If half of the refuelers are not removed by Tuesday, June 16, we will inform more than two million citizens that their summer flights, including Breslov trips to Uman for Rosh Hashana, are canceled,” Israeli Transportation Minister Miri Regev warned last month. “Mass cancellations of summer and holiday flights at a time when the Israeli public needs relief and normalcy more than ever will harm national morale and civic resilience.”

Last month, Israel's Transportation Ministry announced an agreement with the U.S. military to relocate dozens of American aircraft from Ben Gurion Airport to Israeli Air Force bases, freeing space for civilian flights. The arrangement was reportedly based on the assumption that large-scale U.S. operations against Iran had ended.

That assumption has since changed. Four additional U.S. military aircraft arrived in Israel earlier this week, bringing the number of U.S. refueling aircraft parked at Ben Gurion to 33 and increasing pressure on airport capacity.

Regev subsequently instructed airport officials not to approve additional U.S. military aircraft for long-term parking, citing concerns that reduced space could disrupt civilian air traffic and affect tens of thousands of passengers during the busy August travel season. After another U.S. refueling aircraft landed on Tuesday, the ministry clarified that it stopped only to refuel and would not remain at the airport, in line with a Security Cabinet-approved limit of 20 parked tankers.

According to Ynet, an Israeli official said the request to move U.S. aircraft was reasonable as long as Washington was not engaged in a major military campaign against Iran. However, Israeli military officials argued that renewed tensions with Tehran require Israel to accommodate U.S. operational needs.

"They changed their offensive moves against Iran, and it was expected that we would act in full cooperation with our partner," one military official said.

U.S. officials reportedly favor Ben Gurion because of its infrastructure and proximity to Tel Aviv. Israeli officials sought to downplay the dispute, saying contacts between the Transportation and Defense ministries and their U.S. counterparts are ongoing. However, it remains unclear whether a revised agreement will be needed.