Challenge Airlines
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| Founded | 1976 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hubs | |||||||
| Fleet size | 3 | ||||||
| Destinations | 4 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel | ||||||
| Website | https://www.challenge-group.com/ | ||||||
Challenge Airlines,[1] formerly CAL Cargo Airlines Ltd. (Hebrew: ק.א.ל. קווי אוויר למטען), is a cargo airline with its corporate headquarters in Shoham, Israel.
History
CAL was established in June 1976, starting charter operations in November of that year. Originally, the airline leased aircraft from El Al as required; however, on 1 December 1999, it began operating scheduled services using its own aircraft following receipt of Israeli government licences.
In 1997, CAL purchased the Liège Airport Cargo Handling Services (LACHS) cargo terminal in Belgium. The facility, which is still fully owned and operated by CAL, caters to CAL's specialty in nonstandard cargo. In 2010, CAL was purchased privately by Offer Gilboa and expanded its flight operations to include daily flights to and from Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport and New York's John F Kennedy International Airport.
The new name Challenge Airlines was adopted in 2016. In 2017, the airline made news headlines for buying a Boeing 747 on Chinese e-commerce website Taobao.com for around US$23.3 million.
Operations
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Challenge IL operates daily scheduled cargo flights and charter services carrying nonstandard goods and general cargo internationally. Its main base is Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport and it has a hub at Liège Airport in Belgium. The airline carries approximately 100,000 tons of cargo annually, including all categories of nonstandard cargo: temperature-controlled pharmaceutical and healthcare products, live animals, dangerous goods, oversize and overweight cargo, fresh perishable products, and valuable goods such as fine art.[2] The company slogan is Challenge accepted.
In April 2026, during Israel's war against Iran, the company was caught shipping undeclared military material from Liège to Israel, in spite of the embargo put in place by the Belgian government.[3]
Destinations
Challenge IL operates freight services to the following scheduled destinations (as of May 2024).
| Country | City | Airport | Notes | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | Liège | Liège Airport | Hub | |
| China | Zhengzhou | Zhengzhou International Airport | ||
| Hong Kong | Hong Kong | Hong Kong International Airport | ||
| Norway | Oslo | Oslo Gardermoen Airport | ||
| Israel | Tel Aviv | Ben Gurion Airport | Hub |
Fleet
Current fleet
As of August 2025, Challenge Airlines IL operates the following aircraft:[4]
| Aircraft | In fleet | Orders | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 747-400ERF | 1 | 0 | 4X-ICA |
| Boeing 747-400F | 1 | 0 | 4X-ICK |
| Boeing 767-300BDSF | 1 | 0 | 4X-IAJ |
| Total | 3 | 0 |
Retired fleet
| Aircraft | Total | Year introduced | Year retired | Replacement | Notes | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 707 | 1 | 1986 | 1987 | Boeing 747-200F | [5] | |
| Boeing 747-100F | 1 | 1993 | 1993 | None | Leased from Atlas Air | |
| Boeing 747-200F | 4 | 1999 | 2017 | Boeing 747-400F | One aircraft was written off in a landing accident in Liège Airport. | [6][7][8] |
| Boeing 747-400BCF | 1 | 2016 | 2019 | None | Transferred to Challenge Airlines BE. | |
| Boeing 747-400ERF | 2 | 2019 | 2022 | None | Transferred to Challenge Airlines BE. |
Subsidiaries
The group estabilished two subsidiaries which operate in close collaboration with the Israeli air carrier.
- ACE Aviation (ACE Air Cargo Europe) was estabilished in 2016. In the month of April of the following year all ground operations were transferred to ACE Belgium Freighters S.A.. It received its AOC in 2019 and flight operations started in the month of May with Boeing 747-400F transferred from the main airline. On June 16, 2020 the corporate name was changed to Challenge Airlines (BE) S.A. The fleet currently consists of three Boeing 747-400Fs
- Malta-based Challenge Airlines MT received its AOC in 2022 and in the following year was delivered the first Boeing 767-300F. The fleet currently consists of two Boeing 767-430Fs.
See also
- List of airlines of Israel
- Economy of Israel
References
- ^ Jeffrey, Rebecca (2022-06-13). "CAL Cargo becomes Challenge Airlines IL". Air Cargo News. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
- ^ "CAL - Cargo Air lines - Company Profile". Archived from the original on 2009-02-20. Retrieved 2008-03-06.
- ^ "Une cargaison militaire interceptée à Liège Airport avant son départ vers Israël : « Elle contenait sans autorisation des lasers, des viseurs et des systèmes de contrôle de tir »". RTL Info (in French). 2026-04-10. Retrieved 2026-04-17.
- ^ "Global Airline Guide 2025 - Challenge Airlines IL". Airliner World. September 2025. p. 63.
- ^ "מרקיע שחקים - בואינג 4X-Atx 707". Archived from the original on 2018-12-09. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
- ^ "REPORT ON THE MISHAP OF THE AIRCRAFT BOEING B747-271C REGISTERED 4X-ICM AT LIEGE (BELGIUM) ON OCT 01, 2003" (PDF). Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
- ^ "מרקיע שחקים - עודכן! בואינג 4X-Icl 747". Archived from the original on 2018-12-07. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
- ^ "מרקיע שחקים - בואינג 4X-Ico 747". Archived from the original on 2018-12-07. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
External links
