Madagascar Airlines (MGY, Antananarivo) obtained its own air operator's certificate (AOC) and operating license (OL) from the Malagasy civil aviation authority (Aviation Civile de Madagascar – ACM) on April 17, 2023, the flag carrier announced.

Following a five-phase regulatory process launched nearly a year ago, Madagascar Airlines will now operate as a fully-fledged carrier, having met all requirements, the board of directors said in a statement.

In the coming months, Madagascar Airlines will resume long-haul flights to Asia and introduce ten new destinations in the coming years, they added.

Madagascar Airlines' new chief executive officer Thierry de Bailleul has told the country's Newsmada the airline is expecting the arrival of its first E190-E2 before June 26 but gave no further details. "We are also studying a certain number of solutions to start long-haul operations independently this year, with our own aircraft," he said. "In the new business plan, we will have to find the management model so as to have both reasonable fares but at the same times high enough to cover our costs," he told a news briefing. The Malagasy state already provides a USD20 million sovereign guarantee for a B787, plus three E190-E2s on long-term leases from Azorra for domestic routes from October 2023.

Chief of flight operations, Mahery Andriamamonjy, said Madagascar Airlines is currently using six ATR - Avions de Transport Régionals leased from Tsaradia for domestic flights. According to the ch-aviation fleets module, Tsaradia leases four ATR72-500s and two ATR72-600s from Abelo Capital Aviation and Falko Regional Aircraft.

Last year, Madagascar's President Andry Rajoelina announced the flag carrier was looking to acquire its own B787 for long-haul services but negotiations with Boeing seem to have hit a snag lately. Madagascar Airlines leased a B787-8 from Ethiopian Airlines between July and September 2022. Since then, it has relied on a string of leased A330-200s, amongst others from Maltese carriers Hi Fly Malta and Maleth-Aero. Air Belgium (KF, Brussels Charleroi) currently provides A330-200 capacity for the long-haul route between Antananarivo and Paris CDG, France.

To date, Madagascar Airlines has merely functioned as the new combined brand of Air Madagascar and its domestic subsidiary Tsaradia, both under receivership since November 18, 2021, and whose existing AOC and licenses it has used since its launch on November 6, 2021.

As reported, the receivership – called "redressement judiciaire" locally - is a transitional bankruptcy protection period that forms part of the airline's restructuring plan. The new entity, Madagascar Airlines, was established to take over operations from the two stricken airlines. As part of the debt repayment plan, Madagascar Airlines leases aircraft, crew, and key personnel from the two old companies, providing them the means to pay off their debts over an extended period.