Swiss Airline Catering Company Gategroup Backs El Al’s Venture Fund

Swiss airline catering and retail company Gategroup Holding AG is joining Cockpit Innovation, the tech investment arm of Israel's national carrier EL AL Israel Airlines, as an investor, the latter announced Thursday. The companies did not state the size of the investment. On its website, Gategroup reports serving some 700 million passengers annually in 60 countries worldwide. Gategroup is an independent subsidiary of Hainan, China-headquartered conglomerate HNA Group Co., Ltd.

In October 2018, El Al made headlines in Israel when it stated, as part of its defense in a lawsuit filed by former flight attendants, that its own crew members refuse to eat the carrier’s in-flight meals.

Cockpit Innovations CEO Henry Chen Weinstein. Photo: PR