Sierra Leone’s national airline, Air Sierra Leone will make its inaugural flight on December 2, 2024.

The inaugural flight will start at London’s Gatwick Airport on a 6-hour trip to Freetown International Airport. The Sierra Leone government has stated that the airline will operate with a “UK Air Operating Certificate (AOC) while working towards securing a Sierra Leonean AOC.”

Some locals in the West African nation have received the news with mixed feelings -that longing for a national carrier after the collapse of Fly Salone and the fact that it is a private venture.

This realisation manifested on Friday when it was made public that the government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Nigerian-based Xejet Aviation Limited. The agreement pointed out that the company will operate regional and international flights from Freetown while establishing a national carrier for the country.

Air Sierra Leone will boast of a fleet of three aircraft —a 50-seat Embraer and two Boeing 737s with 189 and 149 capacities.

Sierra Leone had its first airline back in 1958 after Sierra Leone Airways was formed. But attempts to establish a national carrier have been unsuccessful in the past with Fly Salone ceasing operations on March 17, 2016.