Transportation Ministry official overseeing foreign airlines also consulted for flydubai - report

Dvir Rubinstein, the Transportation Ministry official in charge of overseeing security for foreign airlines flying to Israel, has reportedly been compensated for providing private training services to flydubai, according to a Monday report by N12. Rubinstein serves as the director of the Transportation Ministry's Aviation Security Operations Center and is tasked with supervising foreign airlines, including flydubai and Emirates.

This revelation has raised concerns about a potential conflict of interest due to his private consulting work with these airlines.

Despite being described as a senior aviation security role, Rubinstein is not considered a civil servant by the ministry. Instead, he operates through an outsourcing arrangement while maintaining other positions. He owns a private company, Dvir, through which he offers various services and has also served as a senior security lecturer at Sigma 005 College, a school managed by the police.

According to N12, Rubinstein's duties extended beyond his transportation ministry responsibilities, as he reportedly traveled to the United Arab Emirates to conduct private training sessions for both Emirates and flydubai before returning to Israel and continuing his oversight of these airlines for the ministry. His position description included responsibility for all security approvals and permits for every airline and flight entering Israel, both before and during flights.

The Israeli newspaper highlighted the overlap between Rubinstein's regulatory duties and his private work for the airlines as a potentially serious conflict of interest. Rubinstein has been providing services to the ministry through an outsourcing arrangement, and he is not classified as a state employee. The ministry stated that his additional occupations are approved and carried out outside of his working hours in relation to his work with the ministry. Rubinstein and the Transportation Ministry did not respond to follow-up inquiries from N12.