■ ANGOLA: Plans for TAAG civil aviation academy in the pipeline: Carreira.

At a press conference held in Luanda last week to update the public on the airline's restructuring and reorientation program, Rui Carriera, the Executive Director of TAAG Linhas Aéreas de Angola (DT), said the Angolan flag carrier intends to make staff training and skill development a priority in the coming years through the opening of a civil aviation academy. 

TAAG 777 (Boeing)

According to TAAG, Mr Carreira said the move to develop the academy would fall under the "Training" aspect of TAAG's four "C" focus areas - Crescimento, Cliente, Controlo e Capacitação (Growth, Customer, Checks and Training) - designed to turn the airline into a profitable, self sustaining entity.

The academy will emphasize the training and development of future TAAG pilots as well as technical abilities in the areas of maintenance, ground operations, and aviation medicine.

He added that TAAG recognizes that in order to compete in a highly sophisticated and competitive industry, where quality, skills and staff motivation is critical to success, TAAG would also continue to focus on the grooming of future executives and managers in the company, launched last year via the TAAG Corporate Academy initiative.

On the "Growth" aspect, Mr Carreira said that TAAG will seek to increase the density of its domestic routes in order to facilitate "national cohesion and provincial development". Externally, TAAG aims to consolidate its regional position within sub-Saharan Africa, and, through the selective launching of new intercontinental destinations, hopes to transform itself into a leader in the region.

"Customer"-wise TAAG has sought to improve its quality of customer care and satisfaction through a program that seeks to train and hold TAAG employees to acceptable standards through the careful monitoring of their services. The airline is to undergo a rejuvenation of its public image with new uniforms and better on board service.

Regarding "Checks", Carreira said TAAG is hoping to achieve ISO9001 certification through the use of the IAMS (Integrated Airline Management System).

TAAG registered a growth in passenger traffic of 11% for the year ending 2012, with 1.1million passengers flown, which, in real terms, growth translated into a growth of 22.6% in revenues, up USD120million to USD650million.