Both Libyan Airlines and Afriqiyah Airways have decided to increase their flight ticket prices threefold starting from December.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Libyan Airlines said the decision will include all domestic and external flights.
The Director of Media Office in Libyan Airlines Mohamed Kenwa told 218News that the company has decided to increase the price of its flight tickets due to the recent change in the official exchange rate.
The company explained to its customers that if they used their tickets before the date of implementation of the decision, they will not pay the difference in ticket price.
The decision of the company was widely objected by Libyan citizens who considered the increase in ticket prices is exaggerated in the light of the shortage of liquidity and the high price of dollar.
In September, Libya’s UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) has imposed a 183% fee on commercial and private foreign currency transactions to narrow the gap between the official and black market rates, bringing the effective official rate for such transactions to LYD 3.9 per one dollar.
A few days later, the Minister of Economy Ali Al-Essawi discussed with Libyan airliners the repercussions of the economic reforms on their companies, but no official decisions resulted from the meeting.
The Libyan Airlines said on its Facebook page that its talks with the government had failed to reach an exemption of the company from buying dollars for the new tax-added prices.
