History
Aero Dili was founded on 21 June 2018 [1] by Lourenço de Oliveira, a native of Atauro. [6] [7] De Oliveira has a background in maritime transport; [7] [8] he has since been the owner of Dili's two casinos, and has made investments in other industries, including aquaculture and agriculture. [9] [10]
Before deciding to invest in Timor-Leste's aviation industry, an initiative he later described as "... a dream come true," the founder had also studied aviation processes in other countries for twenty years. [6]
The airline's first income-earning activity, under a memorandum of understanding with the government made in January 2018, was to acquire and make available to the Timor-Leste Defence Force (F-FDTL) a Cessna 172P aircraft, together with pilots to fly it. The aircraft arrived in Timor-Leste in February 2018, and was put to work patrolling the Timor Sea. [11]
Later that year, Aero Dili was the first airline in Timor-Leste to be granted an air operator's certificate (AOC) to conduct civil domestic services. [3] It commenced civil operations on 21 June 2018. [1]
The airline began by operating a small fleet of Cessna light aircraft for its civil aviation services. [6]
Later, Aero Dili also provided air services as a virtual international carrier, by chartering aircraft wet leased from Indonesia AirAsia and Sriwijaya Air. [10]
On 11 August 2022, the airline carried out a successful experimental international technical landing, using its Cessna 207 aircraft, at El Tari Airport in Kupang, Indonesia. [2] [8] It was the first ever international flight by an Timor-Leste registered aircraft. [8]
Aero Dili announced, at a press conference held on 9 December 2022, that it intended to start international operations of its own in 2023, using an aircraft leased from Dubai Aerospace Enterprise.A a second leased aircraft was to join the fleet after six months, and a third one in two and a half years. [12] These plans represented an investment of US$20 million. [10]
The airline also procured the necessary certificate of registration (COR) and certificate of airworthiness (COA) from the Civil Aviation Authority of Timor-Leste (AACTL) in mid-March 2023. [8] [13]
Aero Dili had negotiated with several leasing companies over the leasing of aircraft. The first two negotiations had not been able to go ahead, because the prospective lessors had been concerned about the weaknesses of Timor-Leste's aviation system and its legislative framework. [9] [10]
The first of Aero Dili's leased aircraft, an Airbus A320 that had been operated by Bangkok Airways, and reconfigured to carry only 162 passengers, arrived in Dili on 20 March 2023. [8] [13] Upon arrival, it became the first commercial jet aircraft to be based in Timor-Leste. [8] It was also the main attraction at an official launch of the airline's international services, featuring speeches by the President of Timor-Leste, José Ramos-Horta, and the country's Minister of Transport and Communications, José Agustinho da Silva, who had been one of the 17 passengers on board the flight. [6] [7] [8] [14]
On 12 May 2023, the A320 operated Aero Dili's first scheduled international flights, between Dili and Denpasar/Bali, Indonesia, [15] [16] and in February 2024 it was used to inaugurate a scheduled service between Dili and Singapore. [17]
On 14 February 2025, the same A320 operated the route to Xiamen, China. The route will initially operate twice per months from February to April, and will upgrade to once a week starting May 2025. [18]
