AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 5 May 2009 : by B Ajinibi

Customer Rating : 3/5

Lagos to Tripoli was ok except the deplorable condition of the toilet, no inflight entertainment, cabin crews were boring beyond description, meal was ok. Landed at Tripoli airport on time and cheerful ground crew. I have never seen a worse and appalling toilets like what I saw at the Tripoli airport. Tripoli to Gatwick flight was ok, a better and newer aircraft, more responsive cabin crew, inflight entertainment though without headset, arrived Gatwick on time. Return flight was almost a replication of the inbound flights except that there was headset for inflight entertainment. Afriqiyah should replace aircraft flying Lagos leg, its below international standard, and they dare not fly such aircraft to Gatwick. Will fly them if they improve on the hygiene

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 28 April 2009 : by Peter Higgins

Customer Rating : 3/5

Dubai - Tripoli - Dakar. All in all the flight experience was a pleasure, with very good food, good seat space and regular drinks - the spare seat next to me also helped. It was also good not to have the flight constantly interrupted by announcements of one kind or another in three different languages as seems to be the trend these days. Tripoli airport isn't a pleasure, but no worse than you would expect and every landing seemed calmer than I am used to on the bigger planes. Two big faults though: firstly we had to turn the plane around for a sick passenger, and no one made any announcement until about 5 seconds before landing, which made most of us think we had turned around for a plane fault. Secondly on the outward flight, my bags arrived two days late. Not a disaster for me, but certainly it could have been for some people. No apology, no attempt to trace me when the bag arrived (though they said they were just about to). Also, only 3 movies for 26 hours of flying. Very cheap and comfortable.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 2 February 2009 : by Rob Sidley

Customer Rating : 4/5

London - Tripoli - Accra. Have to say that in both directions a pleasant and trouble free flight. Onboard catering was fine and Coach class seating exceeded standard specs, both pitch and quality of seats. New aircraft but remember that this is a dry airline so no alcohol available. Overall, I would be happy to fly with them again.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 6 January 2009 : by Dan Harvey

Customer Rating : 3/5

The airline has improved since I first started travelling with them4 years ago. The airplanes are new, food is great, seats comfortable and staff are improving. However, the baggage service is a big disgrace. At the airport in Mali the service is useless, and at the office in Bamako, they cannot tell us anything. So until Afriqiyah can improve this, I will not be travelling Afriqiyah again.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 22 December 2008 : by A King

Customer Rating : 3/5

Gatwick to Accra. I was not disappointed with the quality of service - time, seat, cleanliness, entertainment and food. Each section of the trip proceeded smoothly and I felt comfortable. Whilst the airline was superb, I was disappointed with the toilet facilities at Tripoli. On both the outbound and the inbound flights, I have never seen an international airport with deplorable and unhygienic toilets like the ones I saw in Tripoli.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 11 November 2008 : by F Mahmood

Customer Rating : 3/5

Ouagadougou to Gatwick - the plane which was due to leave Ouaga at 1.00 am arrived at 4am & departed at 5am. I asked one of the ground staff before departure if I could possible catch the connecting flight at Tripoli which was due to leave at 8.30 am considering that it was a 4 hours flight to Tripoli and 2 hours time difference in advance. I was reassured more than once that I will catch the plane and even a message had been sent to wait for me there. I boarded the plane with a lot of apprehension and when we arrived at Tripoli I was not surprised to find that the plane had left without me 2 hrs earlier. I contacted Afriqiyah staff and they looked embarased and didn't know what to do with me - I had to stay in the airport lounge till the next day when one of the staff took somehow pity on me & upgraded my ticket to the first class. Food is not bad, inflight service good and 48 kg baggage allowance for somehow modest ticket price.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 7 November 2008 : by S Anutika

Customer Rating : 2/5

I travelled London Gatwick-Tripoli-Douala with Afriqiyah recently. Arriving 4 hours late, at 01.00 hours, I discovered that my luggage, and that of most of the other passengers, was not on the plane. I could get no information from staff at the airport, but was told that I would have to wait until Monday for the next scheduled flight, to see if it was forwarded. With my schedule completely ruined, and no change of clothing, I had to book a hotel, at my own expense, and wait till Monday. I spent most of Monday at the airport, trying to get information, without success. Finally, at 22.30, I was reunited with my luggage. Some passengers on that flight also, did not get their luggage. I will not be using this airline in future, even if it is still the cheapest deal.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 19 September 2008 : by Michael Redman

Customer Rating : 3/5

Gatwick-Accra-Gatwick and found the journey up to expectations. On time, both directions and the onboard staff very attentive without being fussy. The let-down was Tripoli airport on arrival from Gatwick: very scruffy and down-at-heel, and staff bullying passengers into line for us to obtain Boarding Cards for the Tripoli-Accra leg of the journey. Information was less than brilliant too. The return transfer was a better, but that's probably because I knew what to expect! Afriqiyah Airways are good value in my opinion.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 27 August 2008 : by T Cisse

Customer Rating : 4/5

London-Tripoli-Dakar, returning in June. Much better than charter flights from Paris or charters to Gambia. Very few people on all legs of the flight meant that everyone could stretch out over 3 seats, fast and efficient check-in, I was told I could have taken 40kg, but the ticket issued through last minute.com only said 23kg. Entertainment good, western and arabic films, interesting documentary, and tapes of Koran. Staff responsive but dont fuss, laid back, will give extra food, plenty of drinks. Food all Halal and more'real than that served on 'western flights' but the same on return. Delay at Gatwick but they held all connecting flights in Tripoli. Planes modern and clean. Staff helpful and responsive in Dakar in changing return flight for under £50. Good cheap way to get to West Africa. This is an airline that caters for ordinary people and adequately meets those needs.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 18 June 2008 : by J Essomba

Customer Rating : 2/5

Afriqiyah Airways customer service is non-existent. I travelled from London via Tripoli to Cameroon last December. I lost my luggage - I am still to be compensated and nobody seem to care. I will think twice before travelling again with this airline.

AFRIQIYAH AIRWAYS review : 31 May 2008 : by Nick Imboden

Customer Rating : 1/5

I work for the UN in Bangui, CAR, and I and many of our staff use Afriqiyah regularly. On December 17th 2007, the airline stranded me and 50 other passengers in Bangui airport for more than two days, with another planeload stranded in Ndjamena. Although the delay is possibly excusable - they had a technical fault with the aircraft - their treatment of passengers is not: customer service was entirely non-existent, or deliberately obstructive. No explanation or information of any kind was ever given, let alone accommodation, food or compensation, and they refused point blank to get in touch with head office or to divulge phone numbers so that passengers could. Everyone just waited at the airport for 51 hours, not knowing when to expect the plane. Needless to say, subsequent letters of complaint were ignored or brushed off, and they even refused to sign an attestation of delay for my travel insurance. In summary Afriqiyah is alright when all goes well, they've invested in some newish planes, food isn't bad, luggage is sometimes delayed but rarely lost, and although many of their Europe-Africa connections are delayed by 3-5 hours (I notice another reviewer complaining of a 'horrendous' 5 hour delay, which is actually a fairly common occurrence) it's all generally tolerable. However, if something goes even slightly wrong, they fail utterly to deliver even the barest minimum of customer service. If you are travelling on business I seriously recommend you choose the slightly more expensive European airlines, as the risks in choosing Afriqiyah outweigh the savings in cost.

Afriqiyah Airways review by E Smeeton

31 March 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Have just flown to and from Tripoli. They were late leaving Gatwick on the outward journey due to missing passengers and luggage having to be removed but check-in etc was fine, although we only had hand luggage. We returned on a new A320 Airbus. We left Tripoli on time and touched down at Gatwick on the dot. The service was fine and the food was acceptable.

Afriqiyah Airways review by Krishin Advani

9 January 2008  Customer Trip Rating :

Flew to Cotonou from London on 06/01/08. Check-in a breeze, although one lady who was flying to Douala was carrying around 8-10 oversize suitcases, which slowed matters down. But we were never told of a horrendous 5hr delay! Flight delayed till 2.30pm - not a good start. Boarding was class, and this was one of their new Airbus A320s, so quite happy. Inflight entertainment is quite simple, 3-4 English movies, 3-4 Arabic movies, 7 music channels and children's channel. For a 3hour flight, I can't complain. Service was good, inflight food a slight howler. I was given the choice between chicken and beef - I asked for chicken and was given 150% vegetarian! A bit low - then asked for beef - since they didn't collect my veg tray - had two lunches! Arrival in Tripoli was late, but our Cotonou sector was delayed by 2hrs - the flight was still in Cairo at the time! We should have been airborne by 18.40 from Tripoli; but instead left around 22.30. We arrived in Cotonou at 3.30am, more convalescent with Royal Air Maroc timing. Aircraft on this sector was tired, no entertainment, and lighting was depressing. I am surprised though. I believe Afriqiyah are currently going through a rough patch with the West African flights it seems. From Tripoli to Cotonou, only 11 passengers in total boarded. Last night's flight to Cotonou had 14 passengers. The sector is operating under a heavy loss. The reason I foresee is that their timings from Tripoli are based around leaving about 8am Tripoli time, hence getting into Europe around 11am/12pm European time. Passengers miss their morning appointments and in some cases, their transit flights. This is my assumption. Anyone else have a technical reason? The fare was amazing - around £350 for a 3 week ticket. Can't be blamed. Despite a monumental setback on this flight, and it being empty, I'd still fly them.

Afriqiyah Airways review by Chris Simpson

5 October 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

I was amazed at the ticket price, around FCFA300,000 Abidjan-Gatwick return, less than 300 pounds sterling. This is extremely good value given prices charged by other carriers for West Africa-Europe trips. I expected a fairly bare bones service, but food was adequate, if unspectacular. I was impressed by the friendliness of the service at Tripoli, with staff making sure tricky connections were met on time. Delays on the return home, particularly at Gatwick, were irksome and a bit more information would have been welcome. Inflight movie choice was fair, but no audio!

Afriqiyah Airways review by E Kofi-Opata

12 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Ghana to Gatwick via Tripoli. The trip was smooth but the aircraft looked tired. Food was not too great. Tripoli to Gatwick the stewards did what they were supposed to, and then were chatting at rear the whole time. There were not enough blankets, even though the flight was not full.

Afriqiyah Airways review by S Ngantu

11 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick to Doula via Tripoli and Bangui. Outbound flight was 40 minutes late and inbound we spent a day in Tripoli in a rather nice hotel paid for by the airline as there was no onward flight from Tripoli to Gatwick. It was a welcome break as we were still on holiday and rather enjoyed our shopping in Tripoli. Overall this airline is practical if you are not in a hurry, are laid back, do not enjoy onboard entertainment and don't like stewards and stewardesses fussing over you. It is also cheap and the food is okay which are added bonuses.

Afriqiyah Airways review by Richard Green

22 June 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

I recently flew London-Accra and back from Lome. I found the overall experience to be surprisingly pleasant. The ground staff at Gatwick were friendly and efficient. The aircraft were clean and tidy, and left and arrived on time. It's true that the seat pitch makes for cramped flights, but low loads on all four flights meant that people could stretch out. The crew's attitude was very patchy however - some great, some ok, but most pretty disinterested. The food was fine - I've certainly had a lot worse - and the fare was a good deal cheaper than the more established carriers. I wouldn't hesitate to fly them again.

Afriqiyah Airways review by Philip Earl

28 May 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Gatwick - Tripoli return. Cost £252, so good value but definitely no frills, you get what you pay for. Food average - better on return - hearty breakfast. Cabin staff do just what is necessary and no more. Left bang on time on return and landed bang on time at Gatwick. 90 minute delay going out not due to airline but absorbing Ghanan passengers from another carrier who cancelled their flight and took an age to sort out the ticketing. Arrived 55 mins late. Near riot at Tripoli when Libyan customs initially wanted to send them back to London but eventually relented and let them into transit! No worse experience overall than many with Flybe who I use frequently and whose customer relations border on the laughable at times.

Afriqiyah Airways review by R Greco

25 April 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Good overall. Flew from Tripoli to Bangui - then return with layover in Cameroon. Clean enough - mostly empty flight. Food pretty good actually. Friendly enough staff - answered questions and help us transit through. Was expecting it to be pretty shoddy from, but was pretty good. I would fly again if needed.

Afriqiyah Airways review by A Docherty

15 April 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

I recently travelled Gatwick to Tripoli and back on this airline. in general the flights were good, the outbound departure was 10 minutes late and the return was 30 minutes late, both arrived about on schedule. The aircraft was an A320, it was clean and well presented, the meals were average to good and the cabin service was quiet and efficient. My only big misgiving was the seat pith which was frankly far too close for anything more than a 1 hour flight. Both flights were carrying very low load factors, the return flight had just 20 passengers! If this airline wants to survive and expand it would do well to increase the seat pitch and advertise the fact as a sales feature, If these flights were anything to base an average load factor on then they would have nothing to lose by increasing the pitch. Would I fly with them again?, if they improve the pitch, then yes.