work began on setting up a huge tent at Ben Gurion Airport to increase the number of corona tests

This morning, work began on setting up a huge tent at Ben Gurion Airport to increase the number of corona tests for the benefit of those passing through the airport. Earlier this week, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced the appointment of Roni Noma to the position of special director for border crossings.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Transportation and the Airports Authority, this morning tons of logistics equipment were unloaded at Ben Gurion Airport to build a tent measuring about 1,500 square meters. The construction work will take place until the beginning of Shabbat and will continue on Saturday with the aim of setting it up at the beginning of the week. The new tents will be located in Parking Lot 25, which is located next to the entrance hall on the G-level of Terminal 3.
At the end of its construction, dozens of corona testing stations will be deployed in the tent, which will allow it to expand the testing capacity at Ben Gurion Airport to 2,500 people per hour.
According to estimates by the Airports Authority, the number of passengers in July-September 2021 will increase significantly up to 150,000 passengers per week and about 2,500 passengers per hour. This is while the 70 sampling stations that exist at Ben Gurion Airport are only able to sample up to about 1,680 passengers per hour.
The project is led by the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Defense, through the headquarters of the Assistant Minister of Defense for Defense, together with the bodies of the Ministry of Defense, Transportation, Health and the Airports Authority.
Transport Minister Merav Michaeli: "The additional testing complex located at Ben Gurion Airport is necessary for maintaining public health and protecting Israel's borders from the virus, and joins the steps we have already taken such as separating the landers from flights from countries at maximum risk to one terminal.
"I am pleased that the Ministry of Defense has accepted our offer to set up the tent in the allocated compound, thus saving tenders and costing public health. The Ministry of Transportation is at the disposal of government ministries in every need so we can fight morbidity in the best way." Defense Minister Bnei Gantz: "Increasing the test capacity at Ben Gurion Airport towards the summer is a significant tool in the struggle to maintain the health of Israeli citizens and the Israeli economy. "As we have done throughout the Corona period, the defense establishment will continue to assist in the operational effort, and in any national mission that is set before it in order to protect the citizens of Israel."