Etihad Airways, the national airline of theUnited Arab Emirates, has announced today, that it will soon begin flights toTripoli. The Libyan capital will become the fifth North African destination for the carrier.

The Chief Executive Officer of Etihad Airways, Mr James Hogan, said the airline was planning three flights a week to Tripoli.

“As soon as the NATO no-fly zone is lifted, the airport is declared safe and all appropriate infra-structure is in place we will be able to begin services,” he said.

The return flights will be on sale within weeks and will be operated with an Airbus A330-200 aircraft. These flights will comprise of 22 Pearl Business Class and 240 Coral Economy seats.

Mr Hogan said the proposed schedule would allow maximum connectivity over Abu Dhabifor flights from Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Peshawar in Pakistan.