Taking a flight on elal that arrives on a Friday morning

amother

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 7:20 pm

Anyone have experience flying to Israel using El al and a flight that arrives at 10:00 Friday morning? Is it too risky for shomer shobbos people? Tht flight is very cheap. I am considering it but I wonder if it gets delayed there's a risk it will be completely cancelled if it might have to land on shobbos. Any thoughts?

4geesmom

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 7:31 pm

I’ve taken that flight in the winter.
Honestly it was ok.
We arrived to yerushalayim at about 11.
Still had time to go out to the shuk and some last minute shopping.
I think it depends what season you are going.

amother

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 7:33 pm

4geesmom wrote:

We might do it in November. What time was shobbos when you did it?

amother

Ecru

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 8:01 pm

I went with flight landing even later. It was a direct flight I figured if it's delayed I could get out and go home.
Went to a relative 30 minutes away from airport.
Luggage and passport control went super fast. I was home less than an hour and a half after flight landed.
I went to visit my parents and couch take off from work. Flight was leaving Thursday late afternoon with elal

amother

Seablue

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 8:40 pm

A few years ago in the winter (January) we took an 8:30pm flight Thursday night and arrived to yerushalayim like 2 hours to shabbos
It was a lliterally a last minute trip (booked tickets, packed up and left to the airport 6:30pm)
Worked out Great bh
It was not a heavy traveling season so the airport was very quiet
we even had time to sit before boarding
One in EY check out was fairly quick. Maybe CUZ they knew its Friday afternoon? So they rushed things

amother

Blushpink

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 8:42 pm

amother Seablue wrote:

Wow.
This says a lot about how little you value Shabbos.
(And of course if you wouldn't have made it in time it would have been elal's fault for being horrible anti-chareidim and religion haters.)

amother

Ultramarine

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 8:46 pm

I would only consider doing it with Elal. Hopefully if there were a significant delay they would reschedule. I live in Israel, I've had relatives take the flight many times. If this were my only option (otherwise I wouldn't come), I would go for it.

With the new train to Yerushalayim, getting to Yerushalayim is very quick and very reliable.

amother

Pansy

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 8:50 pm

amother Seablue wrote:

I think that what you did may be halachically problematic.

ddmom

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 8:55 pm

amother Blushpink wrote:

Wow.
This says a lot about how little you value Shabbos.
(And of course if you wouldn't have made it in time it would have been elal's fault for being horrible anti-chareidim and religion haters.)

And your comment says a lot on how little you value vehahvta lereacha kamocha and bein Adam lachaveiro.
You literally have no clue why they took that flight. It may have been an emergency or a levaya....
Maybe be dlz?

amother

Blushpink

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 8:56 pm

ddmom wrote:

And your comment says a lot on how little you value vehahvta lereacha kamocha and bein Adam lachaveiro.
You literally have no clue what they took that flight. It may have been an emergency or a levaya....
Maybe be dlz?

It really doesn't matter what the reason was. Putting themselves into that situation is a huge bizayon of shabbos and no rav would tell them that that was okay regardless of what kind of emergency it was.

amother

Burntblack

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 9:00 pm

It’s great that it worked out for some people. That doesn’t mean you should try it op. I know lots of people who take risks and don’t get hurt that doesn’t mean I’d do the same. Don’t play around with Shabbos. Like someone else said it could be a problem halachically to travel that close to Shabbos. Even if you’re allowed to, you don’t want to be the one that ends up with a big problem that you’ll naturally blame on the weather, the airline or a million other things besides your own bad judgement.

amother

Burntblack

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 9:05 pm

ddmom wrote:

If someone took a flight like that in an emergency situation, the correct thing for them to say is: I took a flight like that in an emergency and it worked, but don’t try it yourself to go on vacation. I actually know someone who ended up being mechallel Shabbos due to taking a flight too close to Shabbos. It wasn’t to Israel but it was cutting things very close and they weren’t successful. If it’s a matter of life and death you’re on some kind of medical transport. There’s no emergency that justifies being on a regular commercial flight at a time like that.

amother

Pansy

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 9:08 pm

amother Burntblack wrote:

This.
No one should make it seem as if it's the ideal thing to do and not a big deal.
It is a very big deal. Chillul shabbos is not a joke.

amother

Stone

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 9:11 pm

I wouldn't do it. Nope.
My husband had a flight out of new York to Europe once on a Thursday and as he sat in New York one delay after another, he ended up walking out of the airport as it got to the point where there was a doubt what would be with shabbos, arrival time, etc.

It was a very stressful and costly experience.

Do it right the first time - book a trip that you are doing your hishtadlus to honor shabbos and get there safely and timely, the rest is out of your control but you'll know you did your part.

amother

Seablue

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 10:16 pm

Gosh
This site has become so toxic for me
from where to do people take the audacity to make assumptions and call me out, and write such disturbing comments based on one paragraph they read?
You should all be ashamed of yourselves. Pure high school babies

amother

Mintcream

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 10:20 pm

Not too long ago there were a couple of Thursday evening/night flights that did not make it in time. Of course everyone blamed ElAl but you'd think people would learn their lesson and not book those flights in the first place. Ask a shaila, but if you don't ask then just don't do it.

amother

Tiffanyblue

Sat, Sep 09 2023, 10:21 pm

Pretty sure that Dan Eleff (Dansdeals) said it's a bad idea, and he is someone who has taken many crazy flights and understands airlines better than most of us. I definitely understand the temptation, but it's really far from ideal. If I felt like I had to I'd ask a Rav first.