Historic flight plan

1958: Lebanese International Airways, Beirut to Brussels by night

A Michel Lagneau historic route presented as a clear cockpit briefing, ready to help you prepare the simulator, follow each stopover and enjoy the journey.

Period1958AuthorMichel LagneauReading3 min

4Waypoints~ 3 498 kmDistance2Segments

Interactive route, leg by leg, with animated playback.

Real route map

Approximate track based on the article waypoints and available aeronautical coordinates.

01Night outbound02Return to Beirut

Pre-flight briefing

Lebanese International Airways, Beirut to Brussels by night

Understand the mission

Start with the historic context: it sets the atmosphere, aircraft choice and overall logic of the journey.

Prepare the simulator

Check scenery, recommended aircraft, fuel and weather before launching the first leg.

Follow the legs

Use the airport codes, flying times and route notes to build your navigation leg by leg.

Enjoy the journey

Let the route shape the experience: adjust lighting, document waypoints and take time to rediscover the story.

Historic flight plan

Michel Lagneau route notebook

Settle into the cockpit, prepare your aircraft and follow the journey as a proper historic crossing.

A night service between Lebanon and Europe

This flight plan recreates a 1958 Lebanese International Airways service: Beirut - Milan - Paris - Brussels, then the return flight along the same axis. It is a classic scheduled route, long and methodical, built around timetables, stopovers and careful piston-airliner management.

The airline was launched with support from Pan Am. Regular flights began in January 1956, and later agreements with SABENA improved coordination toward many European destinations. Operations ended in January 1969 after much of the fleet was lost at Beirut airport, before the company was absorbed into Middle East Airlines Air Liban.

Period1958

RouteBeirut, Milan, Paris, Brussels

AircraftDouglas Super DC-6

Moodnight long-haul

The scenario

The outbound flight leaves Beirut at 23:00. Night is already settled in, the aircraft crosses the Mediterranean and tracks toward Italy for an early-morning stop at Milan Malpensa. After one hour on the ground, it continues to Paris Orly, then Brussels National for a late-morning arrival.

The return reverses the rhythm: Brussels at 19:00, Paris in the evening, Milan before midnight, then the long night leg back to Beirut for a 7:30 arrival. The goal is not only to follow the route, but also to keep the timetable like a real international service.

Suggested route

Night service to Brussels

The outbound flight is built around long-haul night discipline: late departure, Mediterranean crossing, Italy and western Europe.

OLBA → LIMC → LFPO → EBBR

Return toward Beirut

The return reverses the rhythm and keeps the main challenge: holding the schedule through night flying, fatigue and fuel planning.

EBBR → LFPO → LIMC → OLBA

Recommended aircraft

The real route used the Douglas Super DC-6. Jens B. Kristensen's Douglas DC-6 is a very suitable FS2004 and FSX choice: dc6_v20.zip for FS2004 and dc6_v20x.zip for FSX, available from FlightSim.com.

This model rewards proper engine handling: fuel burn, propeller RPM, cruise altitude, cruise speed and long-leg planning. That is exactly what makes this route attractive, especially on the two major legs between Beirut and Milan.

Navigation advice

GPS is recommended alongside VOR/DME and ADF/NDB navigation. For a richer experience, prepare a fuel plan, dim the cockpit lighting, use calm or real weather, then try to meet the departure and arrival times.