Belgian tour operators seek alternative airports for upcoming holiday rush

Tour operators Jetairfly and Thomas Cook on Tuesday afternoon announced that they are discussing possible alternatives for passengers scheduled to leave from Brussels Airport at the start of the Easter holiday on Friday. "It is our job to ensure that our customers can go through with their travel plans, and we will do everything to make that possible," the tour operators said in De Standaard.

Many flights are expected to depart from regional airports instead of Brussels Airport, according to the newspaper. "We have the contacts and the infrastructure to allow our passengers to depart from other airports," said Hans Vanhaelemeesch of Jetairfly. "We're especially considering the regional airports of Ostend and Liège."

Koen Van den Bosch of Thomas Cook also sees the regional airports as a possible alternative to Belgium's national airport. "We must be careful what we say, because we do not know how things will evolve in the coming hours and days, but we are looking into alternatives. As soon we know more, we will communicate this information to our customers."