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By Tom Westcott.
Tripoli, 8 April 2014:
Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines have stopped flying to Libya until further notice after a number of . . .[restrict]incidents at Tripoli International Airport.
“We have stopped all flights for the time being,” a Lufthansa spokesperson told the Libya Herald. “We are continuing to speak to the authorities and analyse the situation but we have now taken flights to Tripoli off the system.”
He added that, although Lufthansa valued what the Libyan authorities had been doing, the airline had to take into account the overall situation at the airport.
“At the moment the situation is difficult, but we hope it will look different soon,” the spokesperson said.
Austrian Airlines cited incidents at the airport since 21 March as the reason for suspending flights to Tripoli indefinitely.
It was constantly evaluating the situation, the airline said, but was unable to make a final decision regarding restarting flights. “We are in close contact with responsible authorities and we will reevaluate the suspension based on conclusive findings,” the airline said.
Two missiles were fired at the airport on 21 March, causing surface damage to the runway. Although this was quickly repaired, a second incident provoked further concern about security at the airport. [/restrict]
