Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport (formerly Beirut International Airport) is located 9 km (5.6 mi) from the city centre in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon and is the only operational commercial airport in the country. It is the hub for Lebanon's national carrier, Middle East Airlines (more commonly known as MEA). It is also the hub for the Lebanese cargo carrier Trans Mediterranean Airways (more commonly known as TMA Cargo), as well as the charter carriers Med Airways and Wings of Lebanon.

It is the main port of entry into the country along with the Port of Beirut. The airport was selected by the famed "Skytrax Magazine" as the second best airport and aviation hub in the Middle East; it came just behind Dubai International Airport.

The airport is managed and operated by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) which operates within the Ministry of Public Works and Transport. The DGCA is also responsible for operating the air traffic control (ATC) at the airport as well as controlling Lebanon's airspace.

Maintenance and general upkeep duties ranging from cleaning the terminal to de-rubberising the runways are the responsibility of Middle East Airports Services (MEAS) which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the national carrier, Middle East Airlines.

There are plans to eventually replace the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) with an independent autonomous government owned agency called the Lebanese Civil Aviation Authority (LCAA) which would assume the responsibilities of regulation and safety oversight while a new government-owned corporation named the Beirut International Airport Corporation (BRHIAC) would assume management and operations responsibilities of the airport.