Brussels airport to reopen Sunday with tighter security

Brussels airport, which was shut down last week after a deadly attack by suicide bombers, will reopen Sunday with limited flights and tighter security, airport officials said.

Airport CEO Arnaud Feist told reporters Saturday that Brussels Airlines, Belgium's leading carrier, will operate the first flights bound for Faro in Portugal, Turin in Italy and Athens.

Feist says the country has just lived through “the darkest days in the history of aviation in Belgium.”

"This restart, even partial, is a sign of hope," he said

The airport has been closed since terrorist attacks on March 22 killed 16 people at the check-in area and another 16 in the Brussels subway. At least 270 people were injured in the attacks.

Two of the airport terrorists died in the suicide assault. A third man, seen in surveillance video wearing a hat, fled the airport after this bomb failed to go off. The unidentified man has been the object of an intense manhunt.

A terrorist also died in the bombing at the metro stop in downtown Brussels.

The reopening of the airport was slowed by the need for a thorough examination of the main structure because of the tremendous blast from the bombs. It was initially scheduled to reopen Friday at about 20% capacity, but that was postponed because of a strike by airport police who demanded enhanced security measures.

The dispute was resolved late Friday, the Belgian newspaper Le Soir reports. New security measures include a check on cars and passengers on the access road to the airport terminal. Police will also carry out document and security checks at a temporary departure hall, the newspaper said.