El Al Flight Delayed Due to Religious Disturbance

El Al, Israel's flag-carrier, is famous for serving only kosher meals onboard and for not flying on Saturdays. But these signs of respect toward Jewish traditions were insufficient for American ultra-orthodox passengers on a New York-Tel Aviv flight yesterday. According to the Telegraph, "hundreds" of male haredim (members of an ultra-orthodox Jewish sect) refused to sit next to women on the 11-hour flight, which was booked to capacity for the Rosh Hashanah holiday.  

While all passengers had been pre-assigned seats before boarding, the ultra-Orthodox Jews refused to accept the arrangements because their beliefs required that men and women should be kept segregated, the Telegraph reported. As the aircraft prepared to take off, the haredi men stood in the aisles rather than sit down, delaying the departure.

The flight took off after the haredim agreed to take their seats, but problems resumed once the plane was airborne. YNetNews reported that after takeoff, a "large portion" of the haredim used the plane's aisles to pray. Other passengers said that this crowding of the aisles "caused the flight to be unbearable." 

This raises a significant question for travel planners: When arranging a trip—especially religious travel—how do you ask your clients about special requests or preferences? Is it reasonable for a client to request not to be seated next to a passenger of a particular type because of religious beliefs? How would you handle a client asking not to be seated next to a woman on a flight? Let us know on our Facebook page