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bmi, the second largest operator from London Heathrow has announced changes to its list of destinations, including the suspension of its services to a number of cities, among them Tel Aviv, Kiev, Amsterdam and Brussels.

According to the announcement from bmi, the last departure from London to Tel Aviv will be on 9th January 2010, with the final departure from Tel Aviv to London on 10th January 2010.  In addition, bmi has announced that from April 2010 it will terminate the leasing contract for the Airbus A330 aircraft which have been operating on a number of routes, including the two daily flights to Tel Aviv.

The suspension of the operation on these routes is part of the recovery plan implemented in order to improve the profitability of bmi, which is now wholly owned by Lufthansa; which has expressed its commitment to help revive bmi’s financial situation and return it to profitability as soon as possible.

“Looking to the future the company will focus on the business sector and will continue to offer a list of comprehensive destinations throughout Great Britain and Ireland, as well as to other worldwide destinations, in cooperation with members of the Star Alliance,” reported the announcement.

bmi flew 14 weekly flights to Israel, although this number was recently reduced to 12.  It is estimated that the company will now work in synergy with other members of the group.  bmi’s office in Israel responded by saying: “Despite the excellent performance on the route, suspending the service to Tel Aviv is part of the recovery process implemented by the Lufthansa group.”

The company will now offer solutions to all customers who already hold an air ticket on the route. “The company’s worldwide help desk will be in contact with customers according to the date of their flight,” reported the announcement.