Middle East Airlines stops over-the-counter ticket sales in Lebanon

Middle East Airlines stops over-the-counter ticket sales in Lebanon
March 4, 2020, 11:37 am

People queue to buy flight tickets at the Lebanese Middle East Airlines (MEA) offices in Beirut international airport. (File photo Reuters)

Lebanon’s state-owned Middle East Airlines has stopped ticket sales at its offices, effectively forcing customers to pay in foreign currency.

The decision was made last week, after the Association of Travel & Tourist Agents in Lebanon argued that selling tickets in Lebanese lira at the official exchange rate (1,500-1,515 lira to $1) was damaging travel agencies.

“You can only buy tickets online or at the airport in US dollars,” an MEA branch manager told Al Arabiya English Tuesday.

https://twitter.com/Boswall_Jacob/status/1234826580968513536

Beirut Airport’s deputy director Youssef Tannous explained that MEA’s latest decision is due to complaints of unfair competition.

“Everybody started going to the MEA offices to buy tickets in Lebanese lira,” Tannous told Al Arabiya English. “The whole sector was in danger of closing.”

Tannous added that the decision was being implemented for a period of three months, after which MEA and government officials would “review the situation.”

MEA provoked anger last month when it announced that it would only accept payment in US dollars. The decision was quickly revoked after dozens descended on MEA offices to buy up tickets in lira, creating an online backlash.

One Member of Parliament Fouad Makhzoumi claimed the decision effectively put the Lebanese under “house arrest,” while former Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil described it as “illegal.”

Lebanon is in the middle of an economic crisis and US dollar shortage, leading to a sharp devaluation of the Lebanese lira.

source: Jacob Boswall

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