Israel is investigating whether people on the El Al flight from New York make truthful claims about other passengers on the same flight having faked Covid-19 certificates.

According to the Times of Israel, a woman on the plane said she had overheard ultra-Orthodox passengers boasting they had faked Covid-19 tests before departure. Other passengers confirmed the group was not wearing masks during the flight, and the cabin crew did not take sufficient action to encourage them to cover up.

Two days after the arrival, the Health Ministry reported that 11 of those on board tested positive and must quarantine. However, it did not provide further identification details.

“I pleaded with the stewardesses to ask them to put masks on, but I got the response ‘you are hysterical, you have nothing to fear,’” one of the passengers said. Another passenger commented: “We approached the cabin staff, we asked that they make sure they wear masks, but they assured us that everything was okay and we are panicking for nothing.”

In response to the complaints, El Al said: “The claims made by passengers were passed on to the acting authorities, and we are investigating the claims with the flight crew.”