www.Gulfnews.com Libya's largest private carrier Buraq Air will start operating regular flights to Dubai in mid-2006, said a senior company official.

We have already set up offices in Dubai and Sharjah and will commence flights sometimes during the middle of next year," Captain Hassan A. Sherif, Buraq Air's vice chairman and deputy director general told Gulf News at the yesterday.

The airline placed orders for three Boeing B737s, the delivery of which will start in September 2006.

"We have already started operating international flights to Istanbul and Aleppo, Syria.

"In our next phase of expansion, we will start flying to Dubai and southern Europe," he said.

"Dubai is now a global city and the centre of activities in the Gulf. We are currently operating chartered flights to the UAE. We carry about 15.5 per cent of the freight from the UAE to Libya."

The airline was launched in 2000 by a group of private investors. It has a fleet of eight aircraft, including two Boeing 737s, three B727s and three LT410s. The airline also has a fleet of three Russian-made freighters.

Dubai International Airport, the busiest in the Middle East and North Africa, is being served by more than 110 airlines, as it has an open skies policy.

Libya recently ended its isolation from the international community by liberalising its economy and anbandoning nuclear wea-pons.

"There is a lot of interest among investors to enter Libya and we see international traffic going up significantly," he said.