easyJet’s inaugural flight from London Gatwick to Tel Aviv takes-off

easyJet, the UK and London Gatwick’s largest airline, has celebrated the take-off of the airline’s first flight from London Gatwick to Tel Aviv, Israel.

The event was marked with a large cake in the shape of the "Water and Fire’ monument. The impressive revolving fountain sculpture, which was originally designed by Yaacov Agam, can be found in the plaza of Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Square, which is often referred to as ‘the Times Square of Tel Aviv.’ The artwork is said to be an artistic representation of time and change.   The impressive cake, which was over 2ft tall, had been baked especially to celebrate the occasion with the 145 passengers onboard.

Tel Aviv is easyJet’s 108th destination from London Gatwick and comes just days after the airline launched a raft of new routes to Brussels, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Newcastle and Strasbourg from Gatwick last weekend.

Cath Lynn, easyJet’s Group Director of Markets, Network and Pricing said: "easyJet is fully committed to strengthening the connections between the UK, Europe and Israel and offering a second London airport will help us do that. We are the second largest non-Israeli carrier operating in Israel and have seen strong growth since we launched our flights to Tel Aviv in 2009.  Tel Aviv is a fast growing tourist destination that can not only provide a relaxed beach break but also offers a modern, vibrant city which is brimming with cultural and historical treasures.

"With our comprehensive network of services from Gatwick especially, we’re also perfectly positioned to open up many European destinations to passengers flying into the UK.

"The new flights from Gatwick will also offer a new gateway into the UK from Israel which we are sure will prove extremely popular."

Over 340,000 passengers flew easyJet to Tel Aviv in 2013 on its existing services from Luton, Manchester, Rome Fiumicino, Geneva, Basel-Mulhouse and Berlin and easyJet has also added flights to Tel Aviv from Milan Malpensa recently. With the new flights from London Gatwick, which have been launched thanks to the Open Skies agreement of last year to boost air links with Israel, easyJet now expects to fly over half a million passengers to Tel Aviv each year.

Hugo Bieber, Chief Executive of UK Israel Business, added: "As the central port of call for trade between the UK and Israel, UK Israel Business are delighted to see easyJet add to their flight capacity between London airports and Israel, providing business travellers with greater flexibility at a ‘start-up friendly’ fare."

Guy Stephenson, London Gatwick Chief Commercial Officer, said: "We are very pleased to welcome easyJet’s brand new route to Tel Aviv from Gatwick, further strengthening our links beyond Europe.

"Gatwick and easyJet together are delivering even more options for customers to travel to important business and exciting leisure destinations, based on a winning combination of quality service and affordable fares. We look forward to welcoming our first passengers from Israel."

easyJet’s flights to Tel Aviv from Gatwick are available from as little as £87.74 one way including taxes.