Gilad Shalit briefly fainted on the helicopter to the Tel Nof Air Force base, but doctors said he can fly to his family home in northern Israel Tuesday.

Outwardly, the soldier appeared well after suffering more than five years in the captivity of Gaza terrorists who kidnapped him, after killing two of his comrades in an attack on a checkpoint near Gaza.

However, observers said he appeared weak.

Shalit arrived at the Tel Nof Air Force base near Tel Aviv, and a team of doctors conducted further examinations to determine when – and how – to bring him to his family home in the Galilee.

Despite initial concerns that he can’t withstand the physical and emotional stress of an additional flight after having fainted once, doctors decided to proceed with the original plan that will bring him back to his home surroundings

Friends and neighbors laid out thousands of flowers along the roads in the moshav where the Shalits live.