El Al plane flies to Rhodes after emergency landing in Turkey sees local workers refuse to refuel

An El Al plane that took off from Warsaw on Sunday made an emergency landing at Antalya airport in Turkey following a medical incident involving a passenger, but was forced to land again in Rhodes after the Turkish airport refused to refuel them, Israeli media reported Sunday. 

Israeli media noted that passengers were told to expect a delay of several hours on the ground in Turkey, with no permission to exit the plane. Since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, all direct flights from Israel to Turkey have been canceled. 

The plane also needed refuelling, and one of the workers at the airport refused to refuel the plane, causing a delay in the plane's take-off, according to Israeli media. 

An El Al spokesperson announced that "following the medical incident that occurred on flight LY5102 from Warsaw to Tel Aviv, and the plane's landing in Antalya, the passenger was referred for urgent medical treatment."

"The flight crew prepared for a renewed take-off to Tel Aviv, but local workers refused to refuel the plane, even though it was a medical case. The plane took off to Rhodes, where it will refuel before taking off to Israel." 

Delays attributed to Turkish permits 

KAN reported that the plane had initially received permission to refuel at the Antalya airport, but Turkish political parties delayed this decision on grounds that permits were required to refuel. 

אל על מאשרת: עובדים מקומיים סירבו לתדלק את מטוס החברה שנחת באנטליה שבטורקיה לאחר שאחת הנוסעות עברה אירוע רפואי; המטוס המריא כעת לרודוס, שם יבוצע תדלוק נוסף לפני ההמראה לישראל@einavkerner https://t.co/M5CIVPsnSM pic.twitter.com/QtheoQBTOZ

— גלצ (@GLZRadio) June 30, 2024

Army Radio noted that local workers refused to refuel the El Al plane, and that the plane has now taken off to Rhodes, Greece, where it will be refuelled before returning to Israel.