The budget carrier will launch 15 new services to Tel Aviv and Eilat for winter 2017/18 in partnership with the Israeli government, which wants to boost its winter sun beach and city breaks business.

Tel Aviv will receive seven new services from mainland Europe, while Eilat will receive eight, adding to the four routes already operated. The flights are from places including Milan, Budapest and Krakow. Ryanair does not serve Israel from the UK and a spokesperson for the airline said there were no plans “at the moment for next winter at least” to do so.

Speaking in Tel Aviv, the airline’s chief commercial officer David O’Brien said Israel had reaped the benefits of an open skies policy launched in 2013 that had seen a 30% increase in flights to Tel Aviv in the last three years – some of them from the UK from rivals Monarch Airlines and easyJet.

“We appreciate the tireless work of Minister Yariv Levin and his officials to bring tourist flights to Israel and establish Eilat as a viable alternative to competing sunshine destinations in Europe,” he said.