The largest chartered flight of the summer filled with new immigrants (olim) from North America touched down Tuesday morning at Ben Gurion International Airport.

With help from the Nefesh B’Nefesh organization, 225 North American Jews arrived to make their new home in their ancient homeland.

The new immigrants were greeted by Minister of Pensioners Affairs Rafi Eitan, MK Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor) and other dignitaries, along with a crowd of family members, friends and Aliyah activists.

The flight is the sixth such flight this summer.

The new immigrants range in age from 78 to two months and will be moving to 20 different towns and cities across the country.

More than 2,200 Jews are immigrating to Israel from North American and the United Kingdom this summer alone on seven chartered flights, as well as several group flights.

Rabbi Benny Eisner is on hand to greet the new olim

Pensioners Party Chairman and Government Minister Rafi Eitan welcomes the new olim

Minister Rafi Eitan greets one of the new families

(Photos: Jonathan Stein and Sasson Tiram)

=========

Editor's Footnote:
On 24 May 1991 an El Al Boeing 747 airlifted a record-breaking 1,087 passengers – Ethiopian Jews flying from Addis Ababa to Israel as part of Operation Solomon. The passenger count became 1,088 when a baby was born in-flight. The record still stands.

Planners expected to fill the aircraft with 760 passengers. However, because the passengers were so slight, many more were squeezed in.
Flight documents recorded 1,087 people were jammed onto the plane, but when it landed at Ben Gurion airport, a head count revealed the final number was 1,122 passengers.
It turned out children were brought on board by their mothers hidden inside their flowing white robes.
The mothers were afraid their children would not be allowed on the plane and they hid them until they arrived in Israel.

=========

The above report begs the question:

"Is the re-creation of the modern nation/state of Israel a geo-political accident of history that took 1900 years to happen? And the returning Jews a post-modern social phenomenon? Or are these things the promises of God coming into effect in our time?"