British Airways celebrated its successful six month return to Lebanon with its partners and customers at a ceremony held at the British Ambassador's residence in Beirut. Following the integration of bmi into British Airways, October 2012 marked the official launch of British Airways in Lebanon.
The event was hosted by British Ambassador to Lebanon Tom Fletcher, and attended by British Airways executives; members of the media; and British Airways' partners and customers.
The Ambassador said, "Having British Airways expanding their presence in Beirut is good for Britain, and good for Lebanon. It brings two of history's greatest trading hubs closer together, and unleashes potential for more dynamic and innovative partnership between the British and Lebanese people".
Paolo De Renzis, Area Commercial Manager for the Middle East and Central Asia, said: "We are delighted to be back in the Lebanese market, after a smooth and effective transition."
"We are also very excited by the strong growth we have been seeing on the route. In fact, In order to better serve our customers and respond to their demands, we recently increased our Beirut flights from seven per week to 10 per week for our summer schedule", De Renzis added.
As part of the integration, the airline recently completed a refurbishment of all its A321 aircraft to provide Lebanese customers with greater comfort and an improved flight experience. Customers can now choose from Club World (business class) and World Traveller (economy class) with the latest on-demand in-flight entertainment technology and new seating for enhanced comfort.
British Airways has a long history of flying to Lebanon - starting with its predecessor British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) in 1946 on a Douglas DC-3. That journey took 29¾hrs, where as today on the A321 aircraft the journey is just five hours. In 1952, the world's first-ever commercial passenger jet service operated from London to Johannesburg, calling at Beirut. Customers flying between Beirut and London can now enjoy the levels of service for which British Airways is renowned.
Customers from Lebanon continue to fly in to Heathrow T1, while flying with British Airways will mean they have access to a network of more than twenty destinations in the US and Canada. The airline offers a smooth and seamless transfer experience at London Heathrow, where the minimum connection time between T1 and T5 is 90 minutes.
With its partners in the oneworld alliance, British Airways offers a global network of hundreds of destinations, seamless customer service, and shared benefits for frequent flyers. A full timetable of British Airways' flights to London and other destinations is available online at ba.com -- and customers can book, pay and check-in online for their flights.
