NNA - Caretaker Minister of Public Works and Transport, Ali Hamieh, visited Rafic Hariri International Airport this afternoon, accompanied by Director General of Civil Aviation, Engineer Fadi al-Hassan, Commander of Airport Security Service, Brigadier General Fadi al-Kfouri, and several officers and heads of departments and units at the airport.

Hamieh toured some sections of the airport which began from the control tower, praising the work of air traffic controllers, all employees of the General Directorate of Civil Aviation, and all security apparatuses working at the airport.

From the control tower, Hamieh touched on measures adopted at the airport during the past hours, saying: “In wake of the developments at the regional level, coordination was made with His Excellency, House Speaker Nabih Berri, and His Excellency the Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, and out of safety concern for the security of the Lebanese airspace and the people traveling to and from the airport, a precautionary measure was taken by closing the airspace to departing and arriving aircraft until seven o'clock this morning."

He added that following contact with the General Directorate of Civil Aviation at 5:00 a.m. today, the airspace was reopened to air traffic. 

Hamieh thanked the whole Civil Aviation Directorate members and staff for their valuable and remarkable efforts at the airport, with special gratitude to the air traffic controllers who were present in the control tower and the security services operating at the airport and working in full swing across all the airport facilities.

"Today, after seven in the morning, measures were taken to suspend the Lebanese airspace closure, as it became open to all airline companies, and today the Middle East Airlines sent a number of its planes to Europe and is working to schedule its flights, and the Arab and international companies are rescheduling their flights as well...Therefore, work will gradually return to Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut,” reassured Hamieh.

He pointed out that the General Directorate of Civil Aviation is communicating with all airline companies to schedule their flights, stressing that Beirut Airport's skies are open to all aircraft, and the General Directorate is doing everything required of it to facilitate work to the fullest.
 

=========R.Sh.