Afriqiyah Airways was an inspiration that has come to materialize the dream of linking the African countries directly with one another, hence the name Afriqiyah which stands for African, and without the need to suffer through the long connecting flights from Africa to Europe and then back to Africa again. It was also a means of breaking the monopoly imposed by the international carries that controlled most of the mail services and air cargo operations in the continent.

Afriqiyah Airways operate a very modern all Airbus fleet. It started its operations with five leased planes and then signed a contract with the Airbus Company during the Paris Flight Exhibition in 2007 for the purchase of 11 new planes including the 5 (A-320) and 6 (A 350) models in addition to the right to purchase 4 further types of the same plane.

Afriqiyah has played a key role in the development of Libyan and African aviation. It was founded by a decision from the General People’s Committee on April 2001 and was fully owned by the Libyan state. Later, the company’s capital was divided into shares that were later transferred to be managed by the Libya – Africa Investment Portfolio.