► UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: Etihad Cargo launches its Africa Summer 2013 timetable.

Etihad Cargo, the cargo division of Abu Dhabi based carrier, Etihad Airways (EY) has published its planned Summer 2013 Freighter operation, which has been in effect since 11MAR13. Its planned African operation based on the airline’s PDF timetable listing as follow.

► LIBYA: Alitalia adds second daily flight to Tripoli from late March.

Italian carrier, Alitalia (AZ), is to boost service between Rome Fiumicino and Tripoli, Libya through the introduction of a second daily A319 operated service effective 31 March. New flights leave Rome at 1500L and Tripoli at 1755L.

■ LIBYA: New Interpol-backed passport control facility inaugurated at Tripoli International Airport.

Senior Interpol, EU and Libyan officials have inaugurated the connection of an Interpol real-time passport control capacity at Tripoli International Airport as part of international efforts to improve Libyan border security. Under Interpol’s EUR2.2million Project RELINC (Rebuilding Libya’s Investigative Capability) funded by the EU, Libyan border control authorities will, for the first time,  be able to directly access Interpol’s global database to detect stolen and lost passports, enabling the instant identification of persons seeking to conceal their true identity, including internationally wanted persons, suspected terrorists and transnational criminals.

■ LIBYA: Lufthansa Systems, Libyan Airlines sign 5 year deal for supply of flight ops software.

Lufthansa Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group that  provides consulting and IT services for selected industries, today announced that Libyan Airlines (LN) has signed a five-year contract for its Lido/Flight flight planning solution as well as its Lido/RouteManual and Lido/eRouteManual navigation charts.

● LIBYA: LYCAA releases final report on crash of Afriqiyah 771; blames lack of pilot coordination, somatogravic illusions.

Libya's Civil Aviation Authority has released its final report on the crash of the Afriqiyah Airlines (8U) Airbus A330-200 (MSN 1024 | 5A-ONG) operating as flight 8U772 from Johannesburg, South Africa to Tripoli, Libya, which crashed on approach into Tripoli International Airport in May 2010. According to their findings, air crash investigators have blamed "the limited coordination and cooperation between the two crew members" exacerbated by fatigue and coupled with  the effects of somatogravic illusions (i.e. an optical illusion that can result in spatial disorientation) as the mitigating factors in the crash.

► LIBYA: Air Cairo to launch Alexandria, Assuit to Tripoli from March.

Egyptian LCC, Air Cairo (SM) has announced the launch of new services between Egypt and Libya effective 1 March 2013. Alexandria - Tripoli will launch with two weekly flights, while Assuit - Tripoli will launch with a 1x weekly flight.

► LIBYA: See Pics of Afriqiyah's first A320 painted in the new livery!

In a ceremony held in Sebha, Libyan carrier Afriqiyah (8U) has taken delivery of its sixth and first A320 (MSN 5448 | 5N-ONO) painted in the airlines new "dove" livery.

► LIBYA: Ryanair in negotiations with Tunisia, Egypt and Libya over possible flights.

Irish low cost megacarrier, Ryanair (FR), has announced that it is looking at starting flights to Tunisia, Libya and Egypt "over the next few years," though any potential flights would depend on the deregulation of their own aviation industries as well as the signing of an Open Skies agreement with the European Union.

► LIBYA: Tunisair to launch Tunis - Sebha flights from February.

Tunisair (TU) has announced that it will start flights between Tunis and Sebha, Libya effective 1 February. The addition of Sebha will bring the number of Tunisair destinations served in Libya to four after Tripoli and Benghazi, and Misrata.

► LIBYA: Royal Jordanian boosts Tripoli, Misrata as Libyan Airlines looks to start Sebha - Casablanca, Benghazi - Dubai.

Royal Jordanian (RJ) will, starting February 2013, increase its operations to Libya, where its overall operation from Amman to Misurata will increase from 1x to 2x weekly from  6 February 2013, while Amman – Tripoli increases from daily to 10x weekly from  9 February 2013. Meanwhile, Libyan Airlines (LN) is to start additional ops to Morocco and Dubai in the coming weeks.

► CHAD: Tunisair looking to start Ndjamena via Douala amongst other routes?

Tunisair (TU), the Tunisian national carrier, are said to be in the process of finalizing a possible Tunis - Ndjamena (Chad) via Douala (Cameroon) route according to Chadian newspaper reports.

■ LIBYA: Afriqiyah unveils new logo and corporate identity.

Libyan carrier, Afriqiyah Airlines (8U), last week unveiled a new logo and corporate identity at a ceremony held at the Rixos Hotel in Tripoli.

► LIBYA: (Pic) New Terminals for Benghazi, Misrata as Libyan Airlines moves to expand network in 2013.

The Libyan Ministry of Civil Aviation is to embark on two infrastructural improvement projects in the cities of Benghazi and Misrata as Libyan Airlines (LN) are to launch new regional routes following the delivery of their fifth and sixth brand new Airbus A320s in Misrata and Beiba respectively.

 

► DUBAI: Afriqiyah to launch 2x weekly Benghazi, Tripoli - Dubai flights from 20 December.

According to their official Twitter account, Libyan airline Afriqiyah (8U) has announced that its inaugural flight to Dubai will operate from both Benghazi and Tripoli twice weekly using an Airbus A330-200.

■ BELGIUM: EU removes Mauritania from Ban List; adds all Eritrean registered carriers. Libya voluntarily retains restrictions on Libyan registered carriers.

The European Commission has announced the 20th Revised Update to its Banned Operators Air List which has seen some "promotions" and "demotions" for African airlines as a whole. All operators from Mauritania have been removed from the Ban List. Air Madagascar (MD) is still only allowed to operate into the EU albeit under strict conditions (as per the previous No Fly List). All Rwandan carriers have been removed from the list. Libya has agreed to maintain the voluntary restrictions applicable to all air carriers licensed in Libya whilst an operating ban on all air carriers certified in Eritrea has been imposed.

 

► LIBYA: (Pics) Libyan Airlines takes delivery of a new A320 as EU lifts ban on LN's CRJ900s from January 2013.

Libyan Airlines (LN) has taken delivery of yet another Airbus A320 (MSN 5373 | 5A-LAO) sporting its new redesigned livery. The aircraft is the first of two due this year with two A330s due in Q1 of 2013. The ceremony took place at Misrata Airport, Libya.

■ MAURITANIA: Mauritania joins Libya, Madagascar in arguing their case to be struck off the EU Banned Carriers List.

Mauritania has joined a growing list of African countries trudging off to the Belgian capital  and seat of the European Union, Brussels, to argue their cases to be struck off the dreaded EU No Fly List. Last week, a Mauritanian delegation, led by the Minister of Equipment and Transport Yahya Ould Hadmine, held a meeting with officials from the European Union in Brussels to present their full report on air transport security and safety standards in Mauritania.

► LIBYA: Tunisair goes Sfax - Tripoli, Benghazi from April 2013.

Fresh from announcing better pax uptake and stronger financials for November 2012, Tunisair (TU) will, starting 2 April 2013, expand its Boeing 737-600 operations from the Tunisian city of Sfax to Libya.

► LIBYA: See Pic of Air Libya's ARJ100 in their new swanky livery!

As mentioned in our previous post, Air Libya (7Q), the private Libyan carrier formerly known as Tibesti Air Libya, is set to receive its first BAe146-300/ARJ100 (MSN: 3234 | 5A-FLB) in the carrier's new corporate identity and livery.

● STRIKES! African aviation scene hit by wave of strikes as Namibia, Mozambique, Libya and Kenya affected.

The season for go slows and strikes appears to have hit the African aviation scene this week with 4 countries reporting industrial action, either planned, or ongoing.