MEA's mini-sized timetable, issue 64 is a hybrid version, retaining
for the last time, the old Yellow&Orange colours but with the new MEA
logo. Afterwards, MEA will choose a more modern Mondrian-style white format.
THE CEDARJET PAGES
By Wassim Chemaitelli
MEA TIMETABLE, SUMMER 1997.
This document is based on MEA's timetable N°64 eff March 30th 1997.
MEA's mini-sized timetable, issue 64 is a hybrid version, retaining
for the last time, the old Yellow&Orange colours but with the new MEA
logo. Afterwards, MEA will choose a more modern Mondrian-style white format.
The fleet included was in transition, with the gradual withdrawal of the Boeing 707s (4 remaining in service), the introduction of an Airbus A320s (while awaiting the arrival of a second A320 and 2 Airbus A321s) on lease from ILFC, and the sale of the B747s in order to finance the fleet modernization (3 still in service before their sale to Kitty Hawk Airlines later in 1997), including the long term lease of 3 ex-Singapore Airlines Airbus A310s in exchange of the return to Polaris of the 2 on lease since 1992 ( in all, 5 Airbus A310s were in service with MEA in 1997).
MEA announces the arrival of its first Airbus A320, with the new colour scheme on January 31st 1997.
This transition period is therefore marked with a complex
organization of the route network with 13 airliners of 4 different types
serving 34 destinations on 4 continents with as much as 14 destinations
served only once-weekly (including Kano, to which MEA flew every 15 days).
The table below indicates the routings of flights leaving
Beirut.
| Flight number | Flights per week | Routing | Aircraft |
| ME 201 | 5 | Beirut-London | A310 |
| ME 205 | 1 | Beirut-Berlin | B707 |
| ME 211 | 6 | Beirut-Paris/Orly | A310 |
| ME 215 | 1 | Beirut-Nice | A310 |
| ME/LH 217 | 2 | Beirut-Frankfurt | A310 |
| ME/LH 217 | 1 | Beirut-Frankfurt | A320 |
| ME 221 | 2 | Beirut-Geneva-Brussels | A310 |
| ME 227 | 1 | Beirut-Zurich-Copenhagen | A310 |
| ME 231 | 1 | Beirut-Rome | A310 |
| ME 231 | 1 | Beirut-Rome | A320 |
| ME 235 | 1 | Beirut-Milan | A310 |
| ME 235 | 1 | Beirut-Milan | A320 |
| ME 251 | 3 | Beirut-Athens | B707 |
| ME 261 | 4 | Beirut-Larnaca | B707 |
| ME 265 | 2 | Beirut-Istanbul | B707 |
| ME 267 | 1 | Beirut-Istanbul-Bucharest | B707 |
| ME 267 | 1 | Beirut-Bucharest | B707 |
| ME 304 | 1 | Beirut-Cairo | A310 |
| ME 304 | 1 | Beirut-Cairo | A320 |
| ME 304 | 3 | Beirut-Cairo | B707 |
| ME 312 | 6 | Beirut-Amman | B707 |
| ME 332 | 1 | Beirut-Damascus | B707 |
| ME 364 | 1 | Beirut-Jeddah | A310 |
| ME 368 | 2 | Beirut-Jeddah | A310 |
| ME 368 | 1 | Beirut-Jeddah | B707 |
| ME 368 | 1 | Beirut-Jeddah | A320 |
| ME 374 | 1 | Beirut-Jeddah | A320 |
| ME 374 | 1 | Beirut-Jeddah | B707 |
| ME 402 | 1 | Beirut-Kuwait | A310 |
| ME 402 | 1 | Beirut-Kuwait | B707 |
| ME 402 | 3 | Beirut-Kuwait | A320 |
| ME 404 | 1 | Beirut-Kuwait | A310 |
| ME 404 | 1 | Beirut-Kuwait | A320 |
| ME 418 | 1 | Beirut-Abu Dhabi | A320 |
| ME 422 | 2 | Beirut-Riyadh | A310 |
| ME 424 | 1 | Beirut-Abu Dhabi-Dubai | A310 |
| ME 424 | 1 | Beirut-Abu Dhabi-Dubai | A320 |
| ME 426 | 1 | Beirut- Dubai-Abu Dhabi | A310 |
| ME 428 | 1 | Beirut-Dubai | A320 |
| ME 442 | 1 | Beirut-Dhahran | B707 |
| ME 446 | 1 | Beirut-Bahrain-Dhahran | A320 |
| ME/WT 571 | 1 | Beirut-Lagos-Accra | A310 |
| ME/WT 575 | 1 Fortnightly | Beirut-Kano | B707 |
| ME 634 | 1 | Beirut-Kuala Lumpur-Sydney | B747 |
| ME 636 | 1 | Beirut-Doha-Colombo | B707 |
| ME 636 | 1 | Beirut-Colombo | B707 |
| ME 664 | 1 | Beirut-Abidjan-Sao Paulo | B747 |
| ME 7442 | 1 | Beirut-Riyadh | A310 |
Although the number of passengers increased to 946864 passegers in 1997, losses continued to increase, reaching a record 87 million USD. High production costs and low passenger revenue were largely responsible of these results, prompting MEA towards radical measures including the suspension of flights to 15 destinations in the network, the adoption of a hub and spoke system centered on Beirut and a strategic alliance with Air France. These measures were in the center of the new strategy adopted by the new board appointed in 1998 and headed by chairman Mohamed El Hout.