Ryanair's derided Charleroi hub keeps Brussels connected

Ryanair, the biggest foreign carrier at Brussels Zaventem airport where 11 people were killed by terrorist bombs Tuesday, is still operating to the Belgian capital thanks to its choice of a far-flung airfield as a gateway to the area almost 2 decades ago. Ryanair’s base at Charleroi, whose official name of Brussels South has been derided because of the airport’s location 35 miles or an hour’s bus ride from the city, is still open and has become a focus for flights scheduled for Zaventem, which will remain closed until Saturday at least. The carrier is maintaining services even as Brussels Airlines, the top operator at Zaventem, struggles to access enough capacity to handle its 250 take-offs and landings a day. A Spokeswoman said the company is looking at the possibility of basing planes at 2 foreign airports. <br/>