Natbag
(Ben Gurion Airport)
Ben Gurion Airport, or Natbag for short, is the point of mass exit for Israeli citizens on their way abroad, and the point of entry back from there.
It is a huge compound, comparable in size to a medium-sized city.
The compound is located next to Highway 1 near the city of Lod in the center of the country, about ten kilometers from Tel Aviv and the cities of Gush Dan. It is open year-round, 24/7, bustling with lively activity and a constant flow of people, cars, and airplanes.
From above, you can see the open spaces: roads and access routes, parking lots, runways, and green fields.
Below, everything funnels into the "terminals"—the place where people and airplanes connect. Throughout the year, millions of people walk with suitcases and "trolleys" through two terminals—Israelis of all ages, from all sectors and communities, together with people of other religions and nations. Everyone passes through the "revolving door" (metaphorically) between the departures hall and the arrivals hall.
What makes Natbag an important place in the consciousness of Israeli society?
Unlike other countries in the world, Israel is a country surrounded by enemies and semi-enemies. It is difficult for its citizens to pop over to a neighboring country for a quick trip in a private car or a tourist bus.
When they need a vacation or a peaceful getaway, they don't have many options, and the best way to do it is to buy a plane ticket and fly from here—to nearby Cyprus or far-off Australia. To cold Siberia or hot Thailand. To exotic islands or snowy peaks.
And in a country with as many events as Israel, millions feel the need to break the routine and get out of here.
Most of those leaving will do so during the peak months, before holidays or during the summer vacation.
They will arrive at the Natbag complex three or four hours before their flight time—alone, in pairs, or with small and grown children. They will shuffle along in line, minute after minute, meter after meter, with their suitcases amid the noise and commotion, they will empty their pockets and go through security screening, follow the ticketing instructions, wander through the duty-free to buy a tax-exempt product, and will not be calm until the plane's wheels lift off the asphalt runway.
And all of this will be worth it to them. Including delays and glitches, such as: late takeoff, an expired passport, overweight luggage, and other predictable and unpredictable events...
...The main thing is to get out of their small and crowded country, a country full of problems—and to get a change of scenery.
On their return, tired but satisfied, the path to the arrivals hall will be easier, and after a short or long flight, they will rush to escape the commotion of Natbag—to the warm and pleasant home in Israel, which is their land and homeland, and where they want to continue their lives.
Alongside Israeli citizens, travelers with foreign passports also pass through Natbag.
Among them: Olim HadaShim (new immigrants), businesspeople, Israelis visiting their homeland, Jews who love Israel from afar and come to breathe its atmosphere, pilgrims and Christians who come to the birthplace of Jesus the Messiah, and... millions of tourists from all over the globe who come to enjoy the place that Israelis are escaping from.
As the state celebrates its 75th anniversary, very few Israelis have yet to visit Natbag, but it is highly likely that they will also do so at some point in their lives. If not to fly, then to come and greet friends or family members who have just arrived.
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Historical bits
Since 1948, Natbag has not only been Israel's official gateway for entry and exit—it is one of the state's symbols.
In its early years, when it was called "Lod Airport," it was a small compound with a two-story "Air Terminal" building through which passengers passed, and a single concrete runway for the takeoffs and landings of "aeroplanes." On the edge of the complex stood a small control tower the height of a water tower.
Seventy-five years have passed, and everything has changed:
The compound changed its name to "Ben Gurion Airport," after the first Prime Minister of Israel. Later, when masses of Israelis flocked there, they shortened it to Natbag (an acronym of the full name in Hebrew). Natbag it's a short and catchy name, convenient for filling out forms and for pronunciation in daily conversation and media reports.
For the whole world, it was branded with the name "Tel Aviv" (TA), which is a more familiar city.
The original "Air Terminal" was renovated and became "Terminal 1," a small sibling attached to "Terminal 3," which was built in 21st-century style, with all the technology required to operate a world-class airport.
The old small tower was replaced by a giant control tower that rises to a height of 100 meters, overlooks vast spaces, and can be seen from afar. From atop the tower, air traffic controllers in peak periods navigate hundreds of jet planes taking off and landing from three long and wide asphalt runways.
The old "Air Terminal" in the first decade of its existence.
Ben Gurion Airport has seen a lot in its years of existence. And what it has seen has made headlines in media outlets in Israel and around the world and has been etched into Israel's history.
Here are some of the prominent milestones:
It absorbed the great waves of immigration in the 1950s, from Yemen and Iraq. There, next to the Air Terminal, the excited immigrants first encountered their dreamland. There, they knelt and kissed its soil, which was covered by a concrete surface.
The Israeli airport also received immigrants from Russia who came in the 1970s and 80s, among them famous "Prisoners of Zion." There, state leaders were photographed with them as they descended from the plane.
In one month, in May 1970, it was at the center of two stormy security events—the Lod Airport massacre and the hijacking of a Sabena plane.
During the Yom Kippur War in 1973, it was a central station for three weeks for the "airlift" that transported American weapons to the IDF. Afterward, the prisoners of war who were released after the war as part of a prisoner exchange with enemy countries arrived there. A massive reception was held for them there.
In 1977, it presented Israelis for the first time in their lives, in life-size, the President of Egypt, Anwar Sadat, their greatest enemy from the Yom Kippur War, who came to reconcile and make peace.
In the 80s and 90s, the phenomenon of Israelis traveling abroad intensified.
They filled Natbag in droves—and even more than the travelers themselves, there were family members who accompanied them on their departure and return, excited by an event that was considered in those years a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
1977 - Egyptian President Anwar Sadat descends from the plane at Natbag.
Throughout its years of existence, Natbag has welcomed famous leaders from around the world—from the Pope to the presidents of Russia and the United States. Fans of sports stars, music artists, and just celebrities from all fields celebrated a reception for their idols there.
And in between, it saw millions of passengers coming and going, minor and serious safety incidents, emotional goodbyes and reunions, publicized arrests of famous criminals, customs thefts, paralyzing strikes, official farewell ceremonies for all generations of Israel's prime ministers flying abroad, emergency landings, and more or less serious safety events.
In 2020, it saw nothing.
The coronavirus pandemic shut it down for many months. Dozens of planes stood silent on the runways.
The terminal was empty of passengers. The shops were locked. The luggage carousels were motionless, and the electricity was out. The pause that all Israeli citizens experienced kept them away from the huge compound for a year, until the pandemic ended and they returned to it in droves.
This is part of "The Israeli Story 1948-2025" project.
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