For nearly two years, Israeli carrier El Al has continued to operate during the Israel-Hamas war. At the Airline Passenger Experience Association conference in Long Beach, Calif., last week, airlines editor Robert Silk spoke with El Al senior executive vice president of customer service and experience Oren Cohen Butansky about the challenging situation.
Oren Butansky
Q: Over the course of the war, you've increased flights to the U.S. by nearly 40% while U.S. airlines have slashed or halted Tel Aviv service. Explain that sharp difference.
A: El Al is not a regular airline. It's an airline with a mission to keep Israeli skies open to Israeli citizens. And North America for us is a strategic destination because there is a huge Jewish community and the strong relationship between Israel and the U.S. So 40% of our flights are to North America. We just recently dramatically increased our flights to JFK and L.A.
Q: Have you viewed the cuts and outright pauses in Israel service by U.S. carriers as an opportunity to win over customers of United, Delta and American?
A: In English you say there is no second chance for a first impression. If you have Global Services status with United, you expect a certain level of service. When you come to us, you compare the comfort of the seat, you compare the way the food is served, you compare the way the team handles inquiries. Most of all, you know that you can trust that our flight will be operated even though there are missiles or an alarm. Whatever the situation, we will not leave you without a solution. We will make sure you can travel to your home safely.
Q: Have you had to change your customer experience because of the conflict?
A: Yes. In the past, customers might have wanted self-service. Everyone in this conference will talk about AI and speaking with machines. But when [the war started], people wanted to speak with people. El Al has 6,000 employees. All of them deal with customer service. People will say that's a slogan. But we're the only airline I know of where the phone number of the CEO and the VPs are available 24/7 to our customers. And we're replying. You can send a message, and you'll receive a response from the CEO and the VPs. Normally, in the call center I have 300,000 inquiries per month and I have 600 people to support it. During the [current] situation, it has become 2 or 3 million inquiries per month.
Q: What changes have you made to flexibility policies since the war began?
A: We've changed everything. We expanded vouchers to two years as long as the situation remains uncertain. We reduced change fees, and we are more flexible. Our planes are full these days, but we try to do all we can for our customers and our status holders. Every day we analyze the situation. If it suddenly escalates and a customer says he doesn't feel secure to fly, he can get a voucher or a refund.
Q: Systemwide during the second quarter you had an extremely high load factor of 93%. Also, in the U.S. market you have less competition than in the past. How do these factors impact your onboard service?
A: In this situation you could invest less and just say, 'I'm full.' But we've behaved differently. We've put another flight attendant on each flight and more people on the ground. We've upgraded dining with Michelin-star chef Assaf Granit, increased in-flight entertainment and renovated our lounge at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. We can show our established and new customers that although there is less competition, we are doing our best. We have lots of things to change, lots of things to improve. But we're always in a chain of improvement. Your readers can email directly at [email protected]. They can share their thoughts, their feedback and their complaints.