Middle East Airlines

airline	Middle East Airlines – Air Liban S.A.L. طيران الشرق الأوسط – الخطوط الجوية اللبنانية
iata	ME
icao	MEA
callsign	CEDAR JET
founded	May 31, 1945
commenced	January 1, 1946
aoc	MEA-A001
hubs	Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport
frequent flyer	Cedar Miles
alliance	SkyTeam‡R1R‡
subsidiaries	Cedar Executive Lebanese Beirut Airport Catering Company (LBACC) (77.5%) Middle East Airlines Ground Handling (MEAG) Middle East Airports Services (MEAS) Mideast Aircraft Services Company (MASCO)
fleet size	23 (21 commercial airliners + 2 private jets)
destinations	33‡R2R‡
parent	Banque du Liban
headquarters	Beirut, Lebanon
key people	Mohammad El Hout (chairman & director general)
profit	US$ 88,800,000 (2023)‡R3R‡
website	www.mea.com.lb
num employees	5000+ (MEA, MEAG, MEAS, LBACC, MASCO) (2023)

Middle East Airlines – Air Liban S.A.L., more commonly known as Middle East Airlines (MEA), is the flag carrier of Lebanon, with its head office in Beirut,[4] near Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport.[5] It operates scheduled international flights to Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa from its base at Rafic Hariri International Airport.[6]

Middle East Airlines (MEA) is a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. MEA expressed its interest in becoming a SkyTeam associate member in early 2006 at a press conference in New York.[7] On 28 February 2011, the airline signed the partnership agreement with SkyTeam at a ceremony in Beirut, and officially joined the alliance on 28 June 2012, becoming its 17th member and the second member airline in the Middle East.

History

Accidents and incidents

On 24 July 1950, an Air Liban Douglas DC-3 registered as LR-AAN was shot at by an Israeli Spitfire; the DC-3 landed safely at Beirut Airport, but 3 passengers (of 28 on board) were killed in the attack.[27]

On 6 January 1952, an Air Liban SNCASE Languedoc registered as OD-ABU crashed on take-off from Beirut Airport, and was consequently destroyed by fire. All nine passengers and crew on board survived. The aircraft was operating a scheduled international passenger flight from Beirut to Kuwait Airport, Kuwait.[28]

On 29 September 1958, Middle East Airlines Avro York registered as OD-ADB disappeared over the Mediterranean Sea with five on board.[29]

On 1 February 1963, Flight 265, a Vickers Viscount 754D registered as OD-ADE, was involved in a mid-air collision with Turkish Air Force C-47 CBK28. Both aircraft crashed in Ankara, killing all 14 on board the Viscount, all 3 on board the C-47 and a further 87 people on the ground.[30]

On 17 April 1964, Flight 444 operated by Sud Caravelle III registered as OD-AEM struck the sea near Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing all 49 on board; the cause of the accident was not determined.[31]

On 21 April 1964, a Middle East Airlines Vickers Viscount 754D registered as OD-ACX was damaged beyond economic repair at El Arish, Egypt after the taxiway it was taxiing on collapsed.[32]

On 28 December 1968, seven MEA aircraft were destroyed in a raid by Israeli commandos at Beirut International Airport. This attack was in retaliation for a terrorist attack on an El Al Boeing aircraft in Athens which killed an Israeli mechanic.[33] The attack drew a sharp rebuke from the US, who stated that nothing suggested that the Lebanese authorities had anything to do with the El Al attack.[34]

On 1 January 1976, Flight 438, operated by Boeing 720B registered as OD-AFT, broke up in mid-air after the explosion of a bomb allegedly placed in the forward cargo compartment. All 81 people on board were killed, some of whom were fleeing the ongoing Lebanese Civil War.[35] The aircraft crashed near Al Qaysumah, Saudi Arabia.[36]

On 12 June 1982, in response to the attempted assassination by the Abu Nidal Group of the Israeli ambassador to Britain, the Israeli army attacked the airport in Beirut, destroying Middle East Airlines Boeing 720-023B OD-AFP. Four days later, four more aircraft (three 720s and one 707) were destroyed in a second attack. On 1 August 1982, a 14-hour non-stop bombing raid on Beirut destroyed Boeing 720-047B OD-AGG.

On 21 August 1985, two MEA Boeing 720s (OD-AFL and OD-AGQ) were destroyed by shelling at Beirut International Airport.[37][38]

On 8 January 1987, a Boeing 707-323C registered as OD-AHB was destroyed by shelling after landing at Beirut International Airport.[39]

On 16 November 2001, an Airbus A321-200 registered as F-OHMP was operating as Flight 304 from Beirut International Airport to Cairo International Airport when it sustained damage during a tail strike accident upon landing at Cairo. This airframe would be destroyed by a bomb nearly 14 years later midflight as Metrojet Flight 9268.[40]

Middle East Airlines

History

Destinations

Frequent-flyer program

Subsidiaries

Codeshare agreements

Fleet

Fleet development

Current fleet

Historic fleet

Historical photo gallery

Accidents and incidents

See also

External links

References