103 people were killed in the crash of a Libyan Afriqiyah Airways plane with 104 people aboard as it attempted to land at Tripoli's airport early Wednesday, the transport minister said.

Established in April 2001, Afiqiyah Airways is an airline based in Tripoli, the capital of Libya.

The airline was originally fully owned by the Libyan state. The company's capital was divided into shares that were later transferred for management by the Libya-Africa Investment Portfolia.

Afiqiyah Airways, which currently operate an all-Airbus fleet, started operations with five leased planes. It signed a contract with the Airbus Company in 2007 for the purchase of 11 new planes, including five A320s and six A350s.

The airline has 10 other Airbus planes in service, including one A300, three A319s, five A320s, and one A340. It also has orders for six more A320s and six A350s.

Afiqiyah, a member of the Arab Air Carriers Organization and the International Air Transport Association, has flights to Europe, Africa and Asia.

The company has no record of previous accidents.

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