By Libya Herald reporters.
Tripoli and Beida, 7 January 2015:
Labraq, the only airport serving Beida and Benghazi, was closed for two hours . . .[restrict]today because of the sheer number of passengers, managers reported.
There had been claims that the airport had been shuttered because the government had failed to provide requested extra security. In recent months there have been at least three Grad missile attacks on Labraq, none of which did any serious damage to either the buildings or runway and apron.
The report that inadequate security lay at the root of the shut down was denied by staff. A senior immigration official told the Libya Herald: “The main issue is not security but facilities. This is a small airport which is overcrowded and cannot cope with the number of people wishing to use it”.
An airport official told this newspaper that a new manager, Abdulkarim Al-Jald, had been appointed a month ago and was already highly regarded by employees.
“He is doing a good job” said the official. He added however that the facilities at what was in reality just a small local airport were bad. One of the main “buildings” was actually a tent which could not cope with the present harsh winter weather conditions of ice and slow.
“Passengers are coming from all over Libya”, said the official, “They are arriving and they are having to wait for days because the flights are delayed. The government has not supported us. We are paying for the facilities ourselves. We are doing it for our country”.
Meanwhile international media have reported wrongly that with Turkish Airlines abandonment of Istanbul-Misrata passenger flights, the Libya Dawn controlled west of the country was cut off. Libyan Airlines, Afriqiyah and Ghadames Air Transport flights all maintained their services to Istanbul today from either Mitiga or Misrata. This evening an Afriqiyah flight from Khartoum landed at Mitiga.
Turkish Airlines is also reported on social media to have said that its unscheduled cargo services to Misrata were continuing. It is unclear if two other Turkish cargo airlines, ULS and MNG are pressing ahead with further flights to Misrata,
Turkish Airlines’ refusal to abandon its lucrative Libya cargo flights would appear to be a challenge to the Libya National Army. Senior officers warned on Monday that any Turkish or Sudanese aircraft, whether military or civilian, entering the country’s airspace was liable to be shot down.
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