Belqis Airlines Crisis.. Minister of Transport Rejects Prime Minister’s Directives and Directs Stranded Passengers to Be Transported at Their Own Expenses

The Minister of Transport in the Yemeni government directed Yemenia Airlines to transport passengers of the suspended Belqis Airlines at their own expense, in clear violation of the Prime Minister’s directives to allow Belqis Airlines to continue operating until the end of this year.

"Yemeni Youth Net" viewed a document issued by the Minister of Transport, Abdul Salam Hamid, to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Yemenia Airlines, in which he directed them to transport the passengers of "Belqis Airlines" stranded in Cairo and Jeddah, at their own expense, according to the lowest class of passengers ($280 per passenger), during the period between (11 - 30) September 2024.

For weeks, hundreds of Yemeni travelers have been stuck in Cairo and Jeddah airports, most of whom are sick, because the ministry and the aviation authority suspended the work permit of Belqis Company at the end of last August, under the pretext that the company did not meet the work conditions (technical and administrative), which are charges that the company and its owner deny.

Minister Hamid's directives represent a clear violation of the Prime Minister's directives, who directed the minister to allow Belqis Airlines to resume its flights until the end of the year, based on the recommendations of the Chairman of the Leadership Council to facilitate the return of Yemenis stranded abroad, and to address the shortage of Yemeni aircraft after the Houthi militia detained four aircraft at Sana'a Airport.

The Prime Minister’s directives issued on the second of this month also included sending safety inspectors from the Aviation Authority to inspect the Belqis aircraft that it intends to purchase.

Arbitrary and regional measures

The owner of Belqis Airlines, Ahmed Saleh Al-Eisi, a businessman and economic advisor to the former president, accused the Minister of Transport, Abdul Salam Hamid, of practicing “regional policies.”

He added in a previous intervention on the "Yemeni Youth" channel in the "From the Other Side" program, that Hamid and the Undersecretary of the Ministry for the Sector, Muhammad Muqbil, are practicing intransigence against the company.

Al-Eisi explained that "Mohammed Muqbil" is stubborn because he works as a captain in a competing company, "Yemeni."

Belqis Airlines had previously accused the Yemeni Ministry of Transport in Aden of “obstinacy” in granting the renewal of the company’s license, despite the issuance of directives from the Prime Minister to renew it.

According to a memorandum from the company, the company requested the Prime Minister to intervene to stop all illegal and biased practices and attempts against its existence and activity through the numerous and repeated attempts to stop it from working despite its commitment and the distinguished services it provides to the citizen.

She called on the government to do justice to her against the safety sector agent, who she said was using illegal methods and submitting unprofessional and dishonest reports.

She responded to the Aviation Authority’s accusation regarding its leased plane, stressing that everything mentioned by the Minister of Transport in his memorandum issued on August 31 is completely inconsistent with the truth, in which he claims that the company did not abide by the condition of purchasing the plane despite being granted a two-year grace period by the President of the Presidential Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, and his deputy, Aidarous Al-Zubaidi.