Significant decline in Beirut Airport traffic as 14 airlines suspend flights amid security concerns

President of the Syndicate of Travel and Tourism Offices, John Aboud, on Monday revealed a "significant decline" in traffic at Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut, with approximately 14 airlines halting their flights to Lebanon due to ongoing security and military developments. He noted that the decrease in flights ranges between 30% and 40%. Aboud listed the airlines that have suspended services to Lebanon, including Tarom, Kuwait Airways, Saudia, Lufthansa, Sun Express, Swissair, France Air, Transavia, Turkish Airlines, and Cyprus Airways. He mentioned that Turkish Airlines suspended its flights to Beirut 4 to 5 days ago, while Cyprus Airways is set to resume flights either today or tomorrow after previously halting them. Abboud also pointed out that Ethiopian Airlines has reduced its flights to Lebanon from three to one per day. Several airlines, including Etihad, Jordanian, Qatari, Egyptian, and Emirates, have cut their daily flights from three to two. However, Flydubai and Air Arabia continu e to operate flights to Lebanon. Aboud commended Middle East Airlines (MEA) for its exceptional efforts, stating that it is adding extra flights to fill the gap left by the suspended services of other airlines. He highlighted that MEA is currently operating flights to all destinations and has increased its service to Turkey and Istanbul following the cessation of Turkish Airlines flights. Aboud added that operations at Beirut Airport are contingent upon daily developments and security information, explaining that a recent Emirates flight en route to Lebanon was diverted back to its point of origin, an incident that also occurred with Qatari Airlines. Aboud finally confirmed that the airlines that have stopped flying to Lebanon have suspended their operations until October, while other carriers are making daily decisions regarding their services based on the current situation. He emphasized that MEA is effectively covering the shortage in flight availability. Source: National news agency - Lebanon