The inner courtyard of the MEA headquarters in Beirut. (Credit: Archive photo Philippe Hage-Bouros/L'Orient-Le Jour)
President Joseph Aoun met Thursday in Baabda with Middle East Airlines (MEA) CEO Mohammed al-Hout to discuss U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent decision to allow American airlines to resume flights to Beirut.
The announcement was made July 22 during a meeting between the two presidents in Washington, opening the possibility of ending a ban that has been in place since 1985.
According to a statement from the presidential palace posted on X, Hout welcomed the U.S. decision and said MEA was capable of operating the direct route. He added that the airline would soon receive new aircraft to strengthen its fleet in the event that direct flights between Lebanon and the United States resume and MEA is also authorized to operate them, although it remains unclear at this stage whether such authorization will be granted.
MEA currently operates four Airbus A330-200 aircraft with sufficient range to cover the roughly 9,000-kilometer route between Beirut and New York. The airline is also set to receive four A330-900neo aircraft, which are likewise suitable for the route, by 2027: the first between September and October, the second in December, the third in May 2027 and the fourth in July 2027, according to a source familiar with the matter. The source cautioned, however, that these dates are indicative and could be affected by delivery delays.
MEA has also ordered five Airbus A321XLR aircraft, although delivery dates have not yet been specified. These planes, however, do not have sufficient range to operate a direct route between Lebanon and the United States should such a service be restored.
The terms for resuming direct flights between the two countries remain unclear, with several procedures still required before any potential service can begin.
Asked whether MEA itself could operate direct flights to the United States, a source at the airline told L’Orient-Le Jour: "This requires a feasibility study. Several steps must be taken before we can answer this question."
Aoun also praised MEA’s role in keeping Lebanon connected to the rest of the world despite the difficult circumstances facing the country and the region.
The airline recently lost the longstanding exclusivity it had enjoyed since the late 1960s, a privilege that had been renewed several times over the decades.
