Air traffic controllers at Lebanon’s only civilian airport to go on strike over staffing shortages

BEIRUT (AP) — Air traffic controllers at Lebanon’s only civilian airport say they are badly understaffed and are planning to go on strike next month. The announcement by the team of 13 air traffic controllers at Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport on Thursday follows a report by the European Union’s aviation safety watchdog that raised concerns after inspecting the airport. The airport is supposed to have a staff of 87 air traffic controllers. Lebanon has been in the grip of a devastating economic crisis since late 2019. Public sector and state institutions have steadily decayed in recent years as Lebanon’s cash-strapped government struggles to provide adequate funding.