Beirut, October 20, 2023 (Xinhua) – The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Middle East Airlines Company, Muhammad Al-Hout, announced today (Friday) that the company, which is the Lebanese national carrier, will reduce the number of its flights and operating aircraft by more than half due to changes in the insurance cover.
Al-Hout said in an interview with the local MTV channel that only 8 of the company’s 22 planes will operate as of next week, due to international insurance companies reducing the value of aircraft insurance to 80%.
He pointed out that insurance companies took this measure against the backdrop that the potential ground invasion in Gaza may have repercussions on Lebanon.
Al-Hout confirmed that there was no security information about the attack on Lebanon or Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut, pointing out that the company’s data confirms that the escalation in southern Lebanon will remain within the rules of engagement.
He explained that the company plans to continue its flights and that it will prepare a reduced flight schedule, stressing the company’s keenness to maintain Lebanon’s air connection with the rest of the world.
He considered that stopping the company’s flights completely would give a bad signal to foreign airlines that would stop their flights to Lebanon, noting that the company would evacuate about 10 planes to the airports of Cyprus, Turkey, and Qatar, which welcomed hosting the planes temporarily.
The company said in a statement, “Due to the circumstances the region is going through and as a result of the reduction in insurance coverage against the risks of war on aviation in Lebanon… it has decided to reduce and reschedule its flights starting next Sunday.”
It also announced the cancellation of 22 flights scheduled for tomorrow (Saturday) and the day after tomorrow (Sunday).
Several European airlines have suspended their flights to Beirut, including Swiss Airlines, Lufthansa, and Saudi Airlines, due to tension between Hezbollah and Israel.
The level of tension escalated on the Lebanese-Israeli border after the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) launched Operation “Al-Aqsa Flood” on October 7, where Hezbollah and Palestinian movements exchanged bombing and gunfire with the Israeli army intermittently on a daily basis, causing deaths and injuries and prompting Western embassies. Arab countries urged their nationals to leave Lebanon for fear of expanding clashes. /end of news/
2023-10-20 18:37:00
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