Contracts to buy 21 Airbus aircraft have been signed during the visit of Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi to Paris.
National carrier Libyan Airlines ordered four A350-800s, four A330-200s and seven A320s, while Afriqiyah Airways will have six A350-800s ” all confirmations of an initial agreement signed in June.
French president Nicolas Sarkozy said the deal was worth ”10bn ($14.7bn).
Libyan Airlines said the aircraft would help meet requirements for demand on international routes to Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
”Libyan traffic is expected to grow significantly and having a modern and cost-efficient fleet will allow Libyan Airlines to fully take advantage of that potential,” said Airbus chief operating officer Fabrice Bregier.
Afriqiyah Airways also wants to expand its long-haul operations.
The carrier”s CEO, Captain Sabri, said: ”This order will allow us to capitalize on the recent decision by the Libyan authorities to establish Tripoli as a major hub in Africa by building a new modern terminal with capacity for 20 million passengers and upgrading Libya”s airport facilities.”
The first aircraft are expected to be delivered in 2017.
France is the first Western country to welcome Col Gaddafi since Libya ended decades of diplomatic isolation in 2003, when it abandoned attempts to develop nuclear arms and renounced terrorism.
After that, countries ” including the US ” restored diplomatic relations with the leader, and with sanctions lifted, oil-rich Libya has experienced an economic boom. An International Monetary Fund report says the country ”has undertaken comprehensive structural reforms and accelerated the transition to a market economy".
Courted by global oil companies for concessions, international business executives have flocked to Libya seeking a share of the vast potential wealth there.
However Mr Sarkozy had to defend Col Gaddafi”s visit in the face of criticism from his own human rights minister - as well as opposition socialists - saying: ”France must speak with all of those who want to return to the road of respectability and reintegrate with the international community.”