Ben Gurion International Airport (IATA: TLV, ICAO: LLBG), commonly known by the Hebrew-language acronym Natbag (נתב״ג), is the main international airport of Israel. Situated on the northern outskirts of the city of Lod, it is the busiest airport in the country. It is located 45 kilometres (28 mi) to the northwest of Jerusalem and 20 kilometres (12 mi) to the southeast of Tel Aviv. It was known as Lod Airport until 1973, when it was renamed in honour of David Ben-Gurion (1886–1973), the first prime minister of Israel. The airport serves as a hub for El Al, Israir Airlines, Arkia, and Sun d’Or, and is managed by the Israel Airports Authority.
In 2023, Ben Gurion Airport handled 21.1 million passengers that makes it one of the busiest airports in the Middle East. It is considered to be among the five best airports in the Middle East due to its passenger experience and its high level of security; while it has been the target of several terrorist attacks, no attempt to hijack a plane departing from Ben Gurion Airport has ever succeeded.
The airport is of great importance to Israel as it is one of the few convenient entry points into the country for most travellers. As it was Israel’s only international airport, it was regarded as a single point of failure, which led to the opening of Ramon Airport in 2019.
