Lufthansa resumes flights to Lebanon

In another sign of returning confidence in Lebanese efforts to reconstruct from civil war destruction, Germany's flagship carrier Lufthansa on Monday resumed flights to Beirut after a 14-year stoppage.

A delegation of 74 businessmen, tourists and journalists from Germany headed by Stephan Pichler, executive vice president of Lufthansa, arrived here aboard an Airbus A319 for the inaugural flight.

"It is with great pleasure that I announce that we are back (in Lebanon) and we are back to stay," Pichler said during a press conference held in Beirut Monday. "Together with our partners, we are going to link Beirut to the world."

Lufthansa first began flying to Lebanon in 1956. Flights stopped in 1983 for security considerations. The airliner will be operating three flights weekly (Tuesday's Fridays and Sundays) from Frankfurt to the Lebanese capital, with return flights the next day.

"The fact that Lufthansa comes back to Beirut is a sign of confidence: confidence in the new Lebanon, confidence in the capacity of the Lebanese people to reconstruct their country, confidence in its safety, economic potential, and potential for tourism," said Peter Witting, the German ambassador to Lebanon.

"I'm sure that the return of Lufthansa will stimulate German business community to come here to invest and to do business," he added.

Witting also said the German government is committed to continuing its support of the reconstruction of Lebanon. Lufthansa's return to Lebanon brought to 32 the number of foreign airlines that have resumed flights to Beirut since the end of the 1975-90 civil war.