Libyan Airlines (LN, Tripoli Mitiga) along with Afriqiyah Airways (8U, Tripoli Mitiga) and eighteen other carriers will not, after all, be forced to switch their operations from Tripoli International to Tripoli Mitiga for a 3 month interval after the Libyan Ministry of Transport concluded that Mitiga Airport's handling capacity would not prove up to the task. An unnamed source reportedly told the Libyan Herald that the plan had proven unworkable owing to Mitiga's much smaller size. As such, authorities are now mulling the rehabilitation of Tripoli's secondary runway, the 2'235m-long 18/36, as a possible interim solution while the larger 3'600m-long 09/27 is gradually upgraded. One of the phases commences at midnight on Thursday, September 5 and lasts until 18h00L on Friday, September 6 during which time Tripoli International Airport will be closed. Several airlines, including Alitalia (AZA, Rome Fiumicino), will be redirecting their Friday flights to Mitiga Airport while others, including Air Malta (Malta International), have chosen to postpone that day's flights.