Middle East Airlines (MEA) was established in 1945. The Lebanon based airline launched its very first service routes between Beirut and the neighbouring cities of Syria, Cyprus and Egypt. It wasn?t long before the company also established regular passenger service to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other important destinations in the Gulf. In 1963, the merge with Air Liban allowed MEA to add even more new European and Middle East destinations to its worldwide programme, including service to principle towns and cities in Western Africa.Despite regular closure of the Beirut International Airport during Lebanon?s civil war between 1975 and 1990, the company managed to survive by leasing our aircraft and seconding staff, to other international carriers. With the return to normality in 1990, MEA not only succeeded in re-establishing service to all its previous destinations, but also strengthened and improved its network to Europe, the Middle East and the Gulf.. Today, MEA?s fleet is made up of largely Airbus models A330 and A321.
