Air Sierra Leone Fails to Return to Skies Despite October Promise
Tolulope Aina Air Sierra Leone has come under renewed scrutiny after its promised return to commercial flight operations at the end of October passed without independently verifiable evidence of the airline resuming its London services.
The airline had announced in August that ticket sales were officially open ahead of its planned return to the skies, assuring passengers that flights between Sierra Leone, The Gambia and the United Kingdom would resume at the end of October 2026 for the Winter Season.
In a press release dated 14 August 2026, Air Sierra Leone said passengers could secure seats through its official website, authorised travel agencies or directly at its office.
The announcement stated that flight operations were scheduled to resume at the end of October, encouraging passengers to book early to secure their preferred travel dates.
However, as of 9 November, the airline’s promised return has not been independently confirmed through publicly available flight-operation records.
There is also conflicting information on the airline’s own website, which currently carries a message stating that Air Sierra Leone is back and resumed flights on 29 October. The website also advertises services to London Gatwick, Freetown, Lagos and Banjul. However, the publication of a resumption announcement does not, on its own, establish that the scheduled flights were operated.
Air Sierra Leone suspended its commercial operations on 30 April 2026 after its former technical partner, Ascend Airways, ceased operations and returned its aircraft to lessors.
The disruption left Air Sierra Leone without an aircraft to operate its London Gatwick service, which connected Freetown to London through Banjul under a fifth-freedom arrangement.
According to aviation industry publication ch-aviation, the airline had been using a Boeing 737-8 aircraft chartered from Ascend Airways for the route. The aircraft had a capacity of 189 passengers.
The suspension followed Ascend Airways’ loss of its UK Air Operator Certificate (AOC), which brought its operations to an abrupt end.
At the time, Air Sierra Leone said it was discussing alternative aircraft arrangements with several operators and needed time for replacement aircraft to be registered with the relevant aviation authorities in Sierra Leone, the United Kingdom and The Gambia.
In August, Air Sierra Leone announced that it had secured the necessary regulatory approvals from the UK Civil Aviation Authority to recommence its London routes.
The airline was expected to operate a replacement aircraft through a new partnership after the collapse of its arrangement with Ascend Airways.
In September, ch-aviation reported that Air Sierra Leone was considering a Boeing 737-9 aircraft from Corendon Dutch Airlines for its planned London operations.
A separate report by Travel News Africa on 7 September said the airline was in advanced discussions with Corendon over a charter arrangement, with the proposed relaunch still targeted for the end of October.
However, the report described the aircraft arrangement as being under discussion, rather than a completed agreement.