The Director of the Media Office at the Ministry of Transport, Siraj Al-Hamal, confirmed in an exclusive interview with Libya Herald Sunday that an air services transportation agreement was signed at the Transport Ministry’s Tripoli headquarters in the presence of the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Transport for Air Transport Affairs, Khaled Swesi, and representatives of the Italian Presidency, the Italian Foreign Ministry, and the Italian Airlines Company.
A memorandum of cooperation between the head of the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority Mohamed Shalibek, and the head of the Italian Civil Aviation Authority, was also signed.
Al-Hamal said the agreements will contribute to raising the efficiency and capacity of civil aviation elements in Libya, and will open new horizons towards the return of air traffic with European Union countries and enable Libyan airlines to restore their presence in European markets.
In a related context, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Transport for Air Transport Affairs, Khaled Swesi, revealed that concluding this agreement with the memorandum of understanding between the civil aviation authorities in Libya and Italy comes in order to enhance technical cooperation in the field of civil aviation security and safety to achieve an increase in the number of flights and air operators.
According to Swesi, the memorandum of understanding aims to develop cooperation in the field of civil aviation and air transport and encourage airlines in the two countries to operate charter and regular flights. This, especially after the Libyan aviation authorities committed to all procedures related to the implementation of international controls and standards for civil aviation safety at Libyan airports.
It is worth noting that this agreement comes along the lines of a similar agreement signed by the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority with the Italian Civil Aviation Authority in Tripoli on 30 September, where the first flight from Tripoli was launched to Rome, operated by MedSky Airlines, after a hiatus of about ten years.
Last July 24, the Italian airline ITA conducted a test flight from Rome to the capital, Tripoli, carrying the Tripoli based Libyan Prime Minister, Abd Alhamid Aldabaiba, who announced the return of direct flights to Italy in September 2023 as part of his government’s efforts to lift the European ban imposed on Libyan Civil Aviation since 2014.
