Lao airline buys Libya-bound Airbus jets

HANOI: Laos's state-owned airline is buying two Airbus jets originally built for a sanctions-hit Libyan carrier -- but says the green seats will go.

Lao Airlines signed a memorandum on August 2 with European aircraft manufacturer Airbus to take delivery of the A320s, an executive of the carrier who declined to be named told AFP on Thursday.

He said the jets, with 126 economy and 16 business-class seats, were already fitted with an in-flight entertainment system and the green colour favoured by embattled strongman Moamer Qadhafi.

"We will change that," said the executive. Lao Airlines, whose logo is a flower, uses a soft blue colour scheme.

The aircraft were initially ordered by Afriqiyah Airways.

The European Union in May imposed an asset freeze on the Libyan carrier, which served destinations in Africa, the Middle East and Europe, as part of pressure on Qadhafi's regime as it battled NATO-backed rebels.

With Libya unable to follow through on its order, Lao Airlines acquired the aircraft at a slight discount, the executive told AFP, declining to reveal the purchase price.

"It's a very nice aircraft," he said.

Lao Airlines currently uses turboprop planes. The jets -- scheduled for delivery in October and November -- will help it serve a new route to Singapore, the carrier said.

Communist Laos is a landlocked nation of about six million people that remains one of Asia's poorest nations but is rapidly developing and expanding its links with the world.

The new jets are part of government preparations to host government leaders in the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) next year, the airline executive said.

Fighting continued at the airport in Libya's capital Tripoli and at other locations Wednesday, a day after rebels captured Qadhafi's compound, proclaiming control over 90-95 percent of the country.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011