page_title: Libyan Airlines
section_title: Early years
hierarchical_section_title: Libyan Airlines / History / Early years
caption_attribution_description: English: Sud SE-210 Caravelle 5A-DAE of the Kingdom of Libya Airlines at London Gatwick in 1969.
context_page_description: Libyan Airlines, formerly known as Libyan Arab Airlines over several decades, is the flag carrier of Libya. Based in Tripoli, it operates scheduled passenger and cargo services within Libya and to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, the majority of which leave from Tripoli International Airport. Benina International Airport in Benghazi serves as a secondary base. Libyan Airlines also operates Hajj services.
  The company is a member of the Arab Air Carriers Organization and the International Air Transport Association. It is wholly owned by the government of Libya.
context_section_description: The carrier traces its roots back to September 1964 when Kingdom of Libya Airlines was set up in conformity with law no. 22. The airline was government-owned, having an initial investment of LYD 2 million. It began operations in August 1965 flying regional routes with Sud SE-210 Caravelle equipment. Following the carrier starting services along the Tripoli–Benghazi run, the Libyans prevented foreign companies that also flew the route from operating on it in order to allow the national airline to expand. Absorbing Libavia and United Libya Airlines operations, international flights radiating from Benghazi and Tripoli began in October 1965, initially serving Athens, Cairo, London, Malta, Paris, Rome and Tunis.
  The early years saw Air France providing the company with technical assistance, KLM managing the sales and reservations, and BOAC taking care of traffic, finance and communications. In March 1966, the airline and ATI struck an agreement for the lease of Fokker F27 aircraft to cover short-haul routes, with the agreement coming into force on 15 June the same year. A third Caravelle was ordered in 1968. That year, a study to increase the airline's productivity was carried out by TWA, concluding that operating with five three-engined, 138-seater jet aircraft, and four propeller-powered 60-seater aircraft would be the most suitable choice. The report concluded that the lease of the turboprop F-27s was too costly, and the airline decided to acquire two new aircraft from Fokker in 1969. Regarding the jet aircraft, the Boeing 727 and the Trident were the only options.
caption: Sud Caravelle of the Kingdom of Libya Airlines at London Gatwick in 1969.
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