Turkish Airlines resumes flights to Libya’s Misrata after 10-year hiatus

Türkiye's flag carrier Turkish Airlines' scheduled flights to Misrata, Libya's third largest city, resumed Tuesday after a 10-year hiatus.

The flights, which were suspended in 2015 due to civil unrest in the country, resumed from Istanbul Airport.

Scheduled flights will be operated three days a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Passengers will be able to travel from Istanbul to Misrata until Nov. 30 with tickets purchased by Sept. 9 starting from $349 and from Misrata to Istanbul starting from $249.

Türkiye's Ambassador to Tripoli Guven Begec, Libyan Transport Minister Muhammad Al-Shahoubi, Turkish Airlines Sales President Mahmut Yayla, and several other officials attended the ceremony held for the Turkish Airlines plane landing at Misrata International Airport.

Begec stated that the resumption of Misrata flights is a result of a historic brotherhood between the two countries.

"Our friendship, companionship, and comrade-in-arms are of a different nature. Special relations are expected to yield tangible results. The resumption of Turkish Airlines' Misrata flights is significant. These flights will naturally contribute to commercial, economic, and humanitarian relations. Turkish Airlines' flights also carry a political message: Türkiye will continue to contribute to the stability, security, and prosperity of Libya. It will continue to play a leading role in this regard in the international community," the ambassador said.

Al-Shahoubi, for his part, said that the resumption of Turkish Airlines’ flights to Misrata is a demonstration of Türkiye's support for his country.

- ‘We will continue to diversify Africa's gateways to the world’

Turkish Airlines Sales President Yayla said that their company operates 18 flights to Libya weekly.

Yayla stated that this number will increase further in the coming period.

"We aim for these flights to contribute to the development of both the local population and relations between our two countries. We expect the resumption of flights to increase social, cultural, and economic ties between Türkiye and Libya,” he said.

“As Turkish Airlines, we are experiencing the excitement of connecting continents this time in Misrata, Libya's third-largest city, with which we have historical ties. We will continue to take strategic steps to meet the economic growth and increasing travel demand in Africa and, in line with evolving market conditions, continue to diversify Africa's gateways to the world," Yayla added.