By Sami Zaptia.
London, 17 September 2021:
The Libyan state-owned and Maltese based and licenced charter flight company, the Mediterranean Aviation Company (Medavia), announced yesterday that it is indeed to resume operations between Libya and Malta.
Flights will start from Monday 20 September.
The confirmation of the resumption of flights between Libya and Malta follows on from an announcement yesterday by the Official Libyan government Spokesperson, Mohamed Hamuda.
Hamuda had not specified which airliners would resume flights. However, yesterday’s announcement by Medavia and the lack of announcement by either Libyan Airlines or Air Malta confirms that the resumption of flights is limited to Medavia.
While it is a welcomed move, it will be a service open to a minority of Libyans. The cost of Medavia flights is relatively expensive for most average Libyans and tickets are charged in Euros.
Hence, in reality, it will be used mostly by diplomats, oil workers and Libya’s well-healed elite. But, nevertheless, in view of the EU flight embargo on Libya, it does represent the only direct flight from Libya onto EU territory.
Vaccination certificate
On another note, Malta currently only allows travellers into its territory that hold a recognized vaccination certificate. This is the EU certificate plus a limited list of other vaccination certificates. At the time of writing, this list does not recognize any Libyan documentation.
It is, therefore, unclear what the Maltese health protocol is for Libyans entering Malta.
Medavia restarts Malta-Tripoli flights after shooting incident at Mitiga | (libyaherald.com)
Medavia resumes flights between Tripoli and Malta | (libyaherald.com)
Medavia ordered to stop Libyan flights during Malta summit | (libyaherald.com)
Medavia suspends flights to Mitiga after airstrikes at airport | (libyaherald.com)
