■ SOMALIA: Ethiopian suspends Hargeisa, Berbera flights over impasse with Somaliland government.

Ethiopian Airlines (ET) has suspended its services to the Somalian towns of Berbera and Hargeisa owing to sub-standard infrastructure. Flights between Addis Ababa and the capital of Somaliland, Hargeisa, were only recently resumed after significant upgrade works to the airport's infrastructure. However, it has since emerged that the quality of work done to runway 06/24 has allegedly proven substandard resulting in Ethiopian suspending its flights.

■ SOMALIA: Somaliland reopens Hargeisa International Airport following runway works.

Egal International Airport, the airport that serves Hargeisa, the capital of the self-proclaimed autonomous region of Somaliland, has reopened following the successful completion of USD4.6million in renovation and upgrade work to its runway, aprons and taxiways.

■ SOMALIA: Somaliland lifts UN flights ban after Turkish brokered talks resolve impasse with Mogadishu.

Turkey has successfully brokered an agreement following talks between the autonomous, yet internationally unrecognised, state of Somaliland and Somalia in which United Nations aircraft will once more be allowed to resume transiting Somaliland airspace and airports, effective July 15. Mr Mahmoud Abdi Hashi, Somaliland's Minister of Civil Aviation and Air Transport, made the announcement in Hargeisa.

► ETHIOPIA: National Airways eyes Fokker 50s, Embraer ERJ170s for future ops.

Ethiopia's National Airways (7N) is planning to add several Fokker 50s and to acquire Embraer ERJ-170s in the near future as the airline looks to expand beyond its current operations that are limited to helicopter charter flights, ad-hoc charter ops and a single scheduled weekly flight to Hargeisa (Somaliland) set to be extended to Djibouti.

► SOMALIA: Ethiopian to start Berbera from July; delays Hargeisa service.

Press reports out of Somaliland state that Ethiopian Airlines (ET) is to commence a daily Q400 service from the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, to the city of Berbera, on the Somaliland Red Sea coast, effective 1 July 2012. There will be 3 morning and 4 afternoon flights.

Originally built with Soviet aid, Berbera Airport got a new departures terminal in 2010 at a cost of USD$110'000.

Berbera Airport, (Somaliland) Somalia (Mitya Aleshkovsky)

Meanwhile, in another Somali-related development, Ethiopian has had to postpone indefinitely, its Addis Ababa - Hargeisa, Somaliland originally planned to start on 10 June 2012, due to the ongoing renovation of the runway there, started on 27 May 2012. The wait, however, could be prolonged, as there are allegations of incompetence and poor workmanship on behalf of the Chinese contractors 'China Hono Group'.

The closure of Hargeisa's Airport has forced people to use Berbera Airport, 160kms away, which is the most likely mitigating factor in Ethiopian's decision to open the Addis Ababa - Berbera route.

"The resumption of flights to Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, scheduled for June 10, 2012 has been differed as renovation of runway at Hargeisa airport has not been completed. Once the renovation at Hargeisa airport is completed, Ethiopian plans to start flights immediately."

Read More Here [TigraiOnline]

► SOMALIA: Ethiopian to restart Hargeisa - Addis Ababa from June.

After the suspension of flights from Addis Ababa to Hargeisa, Somaliland (Somalia) in November 2008, Ethiopian Airlines (ET) has announced the resumption of a daily service effective 10 June 2012, using its Q400 aircraft, with three morning and four afternoon flights.

Ethiopian Airlines Q400

Since the suspension of Ethiopian Airlines flights to Hargeisa in November 2008, travellers between Addis Ababa and Hargeisa have been using bus services operating from Addis Ababa to Jijiga and from Jijiga to Hargeisa.

The resumption of Hargeisa flights follows the opening of a new terminal at Hargeisa Airport.

■ SOMALIA: New Terminal opened in Hargeisa as Somalia rebuilds.

With construction having begun in 2010, the first part of the renovation of Hargeisa's International Airport is complete, with the opening of the new Arrivals Terminal. Also in the pipeline is the laying down of the foundation for new taxiways and a new runway.

► SOMALIA: Jubba Airways Antonov AN-24 crashlands at Galkayo; No Casualties.

A Jubba Airways (6J) Antonov AN-24 landing at Abdullahi Yusuf International Airport, Galkayo, Somalia en route from Hargeisa, Somalia with 32 passengers and 4 crew aboard, blew both landing gear boogies on touchdown, thereby tearing off the entire wing assembly, before veering off the runway. 

Puntlandi.com, a local Somali news site, reports that all passengers were safely evacuated by the airport rescue team. Though the accident occurred during the rainy season, no direct correlation between weather and the cause has yet been established.

Jubba Airways is a Mogadishu based Somali airline that operates a fleet of Boeing 737s throughout Somalia and the Middle East/Arabian Peninsula.

Read More Here [Aviation Herald]