• The African Aviation Tribune •

Thursday, September 13, 2012

► ALGERIA: Emirates starts daily flights to Algiers from March 2013.

Its 22nd destination in Africa, Dubai based Emirates (EK) today announced it will serve the Algerian capital, Algiers, with a daily Airbus A330-200 effective 1 March 2013. With the Airbus A330's belly-hold capacity of 12 tonnes, Emirates SkyCargo expects to export commodities such as frozen fish, lobsters, oil and gas equipment and palm oil to points across its network whilst imports including a variety of manufactured goods are expected to form the bulk of goods shipped into Algeria.

Nigerian carrier, Arik Air (W3) and German maintenance service provider, Lufthansa Technik last week renewed a contract signed in 2006, that will see the German outfit along with Lufthansa Cityline - a sister company providing regional European flights under the Lufthansa brand - providing technical support to Arik Air in the areas of line maintenance, base maintenance, materials and pool parts among others for the next five years.

► NAMIBIA: Air Namibia announces numerous changes to its timetable from October onwards.

As part of their strategy of efficient utilisation of their aircraft, Namibian carrier Air Namibia (SW) have again announced various changes to both their regional and international network, effective from October 2012 (the precise dates are subject to each individual post).

Australian carrier, Qantas (QF), will from 1 October 2012 no longer offer First Class on its daily Boeing 747-400 flights between Sydney, Australia and Johannesburg, South Africa, with the last flight to have the service to operate on 30 September 2012.

Originally due in Q4 of this year, Morocco's national carrier, Royal Air Maroc (AT), will only, according to press reports, be taking delivery of its first two Boeing 787 Dreamliners in Q4 2014, which now means that Kenya Airways (KQ) will be the second African operator of the type after Ethiopian Airlines (ET), if their Boeing 787 order comes through in late 2013.

South Africa's Comair Ltd, the parent company of British Airways (Comair) (BA) and LCC Kulula (MN) today reported that it would not issue a dividend despite seeing a 16% growth in its revenue from USD440million in June 2011, to USD510million for the year ending June 30, 2012.

► GERMANY: Eritrean Airlines drops Frankfurt 6 months after its inaugural flight.

Eritrean Airlines (B8), the Eritrean national carrier, has announced that effective 1 October 2012, it will drop Frankfurt, Germany from its route network. The route is currently serviced once weekly via Rome, Italy using an Airbus A319, down from its original 3x weekly frequency when the route was inaugurated in April.

Using its various interline partners in West Africa, Saudi Airlines Cargo (SV) is to launch cargo services from Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to Abidjan (Cote d'Ivoire), Accra (Ghana), Cotonou (Benin), Douala (Cameroon), Libreville (Gabon), Lomé (Togo), Malabo (Equatorial Guinea), Niamey (Niger) and Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) via its new Lagos, Nigeria hub, which it presently serves with a daily Boeing 747F.

► MOZAMBIQUE: LAM Mozambique getting a B737-500, but cash crunch delays launch of international routes.

Mozambican national carrier LAM Mozambique (TM) is, at the end of this month, to receive a Boeing 737-500 (likely MSN: 25418 | ZS-PKV), in addition to its third and final Embraer E190 due in late October/early November, as the carrier moves to consolidate itself domestically and regionally writes the Mozambican national daily, O País.

After a 3 year hiatus due to USD43million renovation works which resulted in the completion of a 30m x 2'090m long runway and a 2 storey terminal covering over 5'000 square metres, Angolan national carrier Transportes Aéreos Angolanos better known as TAAG (DT), is beginning 29 October, set to return to Soyo in northern Zaire Province, Angola.

Emirates (EK) is to increase its Airbus A340-500 operated flights between Dubai and Mahé, Seychelles from 11x weekly, to 12x weekly with an added Monday flight effective 3 December 2012. From 5 February 2013, the airline is to add a 13th weekly frequency on a Tuesday.

AeroVista's Tanzanian subsidiary, currently embroiled in a dispute with Tanzanian national carrier Air Tanzania (TC) over a cancelled lease for its Boeing 737-500 (MSN 27354 | 4L-AJB), has applied for and received an Air Operator's Certificate (AOC) from the Tanzanian Civil Aviation Authority for its Boeing 737s. The certificate is essentially an approval granted from a national aviation authority to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes.

Gambia Bird, the new 90/10 venture between German carrier, Germania (ST) and the Gambian government is shortly to receive its first Airbus A319-100 (MSN 4663 | D-ASTA) as the company looks to enter the West African market with initial flights expected to be between Banjul, Gambia and Conakry (Guinea), Dakar (Senegal), Freetown (Sierra Leone) and Lagos (Nigeria). London Gatwick has also been mentioned as a likely destination.

The Turkish media this week allured to a new possible route between Istanbul and Maputo, Mozambique as Turkey aims to extend its carrier, Turkish Airlines' (TK), reach even further into the continent.

Following the recent signing of a new memorandum of understanding between Turkey and Gabon which will see service to Libreville and possibly, another as yet unnamed destination (either Franceville or Port Gentil), the Turkish Ministry of Transportation's Suat Hayri Aka stated that:

In confirmation to our original post on the topic, British Airways (BA) have confirmed they will resume three times weekly flights to Monrovia, Liberia albeit via Freetown, Sierra Leone using a Boeing 767-300ER, effective 5 November 2012.

Freetown was originally meant to increase to a 3x weekly service effective 31 March 2013.

► ZIMBABWE: FreshAir unveils logo, begins offering flights from USD$50 up.

Zimbabwean aviation blog, Harare Airport Blogger, reports that private Zimbabwean start-up LCC, FreshAir, a 51/49 joint venture between Nu.Com (Pvt) Ltd of Zimbabwe and 1Time Holdings Ltd of South Africa, has unveiled its logo and has begun to advertise for routes between Harare, Bulawayo, Johannesburg and Victoria Falls with flights costing from USD50. Its website however - http://www.fly-fresh.com - is still under construction.

►► KENYA: Kenya Airways to start Eldoret from July.

Kenyan airline, Kenya Airways (KQ), has announced the start of a 2x daily service from Nairobi to Eldoret (Kenya) with effect from 4 July.

Eldoret is a town in the western Rift Valley Province of Kenya.

■ KENYA: Defying Odinga, Kenya Airways completes its redundancy drive.

Defying a directive (or request, depending on whose point of view you take) from Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga, to cease its planned redundancy drive, Kenya Airways (KQ) today announced the successful completion of its Staff Rationalization programme with 126 employees choosing the early retirement option whilst another 454 were made redundant.

As Joyce Banda's Malawian government pushes on with its cost cutting measures aimed at freeing the ailing African nation's fiscus from millstone parastatals, up for sale is Air Malawi (QM) Ltd, in which the Malawian Government has pledged to honour all the national flag carrier's debts and liabilities as part of a deal sweetener.

Panapress Africa is reporting that Turkey and Gabon, on Monday 4 September, finalized a Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) that will see the Turkish carrier operating a daily flight between Istanbul and Libreville, the Gabonese capital, with effect from "the end of December."

►► SOUTH AFRICA: SA Express increases Gaborone & George operations.

South African Express Airways (XZ), better known as SA Express, has announced, effective 2 September 2012, it’ll introduce a 6th daily operation on its Johannesburg – Gaborone, Bostwana route while domestically the airline will add a 4th weekly Cape Town – George, South Africa flight in addition to increasing its Johannesburg – George, South Africa route frequencies from 20x to 24x weekly.

The Zimbabwean Government cabinet is this week expected to meet in order to come up with a viable strategy capable of putting failed national carrier, Air Zimbabwe (UM), back in the air, with particular emphasis on returning it to international service.

The airline ceased international flights in March following a series of seizures of their aircraft in the UK and South Africa over unpaid bills, which was subsequently followed by a court case brought by staff claiming back pay and severance packages amounting to more than USD40million.

Effective Winter (28 October 2012), Russian carrier Aeroflot (SU) is planning to introduce a 3x weekly Ilyushin 96-300 operated flight between Moscow Sheremetyevo and Hurghada, Egypt.

The Russian national carrier currently operates to Cairo and a seasonal Winter service to Sharm el Sheikh on Egypt's Red Sea coast.

On a day of two contrasting fortunes, Jimoh Ibrahim's troubled venture Air Nigeria (VK), having teetered on the brink of collapse for some time, is to call it quits from 10 September 2012 following months of uncertainty in which leased aircraft were ceased, company directors arrested and allegations of safety oversights and tax evasion.

In a statement, the company's management blamed the suspension of operations on "staff disloyalty and a weak business environment" though remained resolute in the possibility of returning to viability next year by retaining 50 "loyal" members of staff from various departments, selected with a mandate to recommence operations within 12 months. All other employees however, had been laid off effective from their last day of work on their various routes.

► UNITED KINGDOM: Libyan Airlines resumes Manchester flights.

Though previously scheduled to have started from 14 September 2012, today marked the resumption of Libyan Airlines' (LN) Tripoli, Libya - Manchester, United Kingdom service that was suspended in 2011 due to the Libyan Civil War. The flight is operated using a leased Tunisian Nouvelair Airbus A320, as both Afriqiyah and Libyan Airlines are banned from flying into EU airspace over concerns about aircraft maintenance documentation and personnel certification.

Ghanaian domestic operator Antrak Air (O4) last week took delivery of its second ATR72-200 (MCN: 171 | EC-KAD) from Spain's Swiftair, a month after the airline returned to active service with another Swiftair ATR72, as the Ghanaian airline scene begins to heat up.

In a press statement today, Ethiopian Airlines announced that its Cargo division, Ethiopian Airlines Cargo will, on 19 September 2012, receive its first of six B777 Freighters it ordered in October 2011, with a second due in October 2012 and the rest to come in 2014.

The two aircraft are part of an agreement signed in 2011 by Ethiopian Cargo to dry lease two Boeing 777Fs on a 10 year contract from GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS). The other four Boeing 777F aircraft due in 2014 will be Ethiopian's outright.

With the signing of a new Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between Mauritania and Morocco last week, Mauritania Airlines International (L6) and Moroccan national carrier Royal Air Maroc (AT) will each be able to operate seven weekly flights between Nouakchott and Casablanca.

In the first developments following the announcement last week of an "alliance" of sorts between Air Mauritius (MK), Air Madagascar (MD) and Réunion-based Air Austral (UU), Air Austral and Air Madagascar are to enter into a twice weekly codeshare service on the Saint Denis, Réunion - Antananarivo, Madagascar route.

Over the course of the coming year, Namibian carrier, Air Namibia (SW) is allegedly to start direct flights between Namibia and Nigeria, according to the Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr. Harold Demuren, speaking as a proxy for Nigeria's Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah-Ogiewonyi. He made the remarks during the recently ended 18th Aviation & Allied Business Leadership Conference, held over the weekend in Windhoek, Namibia.

In a sign that strained relations between Sudan and its new southern neighbour, South Sudan, are improving, the two countries' civil aviation authorities on Friday reached a provisional deal that now opens the way for Sudanese carriers to restart direct flights between Khartoum and Juba, though whether flights between other towns and cities have been given the go ahead, is unclear.

Press reports out of Liberia state that British Airways (BA) is to resume flights to Monrovia, Liberia by the end of October, following the recent visit to the country by BA's Regional Service Manager for sub-Sahara Africa, Rob Cooper.

"The press release from the Ministry of Transport said Mr. Cooper is in the country to explore possibilities for the airways to recommence flights to Liberia. Mr. Cooper said the level of peace in Liberia makes it an ideal moment for British Airways to do business here again. Deputy Minister J. Ebenezer Kolliegbo told Mr. Cooper that the decision

► MAURITANIA: Turkish Airlines to launch Nouakchott via Dakar from mid September.

Turkish Airlines (TK) made another power move into the West African market by announcing a Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday weekly Istanbul – Nouakchott, Mauritania – Dakar, Senegal – Istanbul service using a Boeing 737-800 with effect from 16 September 2012.

At present the Dakar sector is operated via Tunis, Tunisia, which will cease on the 16th.

Quite a few eyebrows were raised in Nairobi during the presentation last week of Kenya Airways' (KQ) annual report in which it was revealed that executives' wages at the airline had risen by almost 25% over the last year; a development that comes at a time when the airline is facing protracted legal battles and now even Prime Ministerial condemnation over plans to lay off (or as KQ would prefer, "outsource") 650 'excess' employees cited by the company as being amongst the causes for their 57% slump in profits last year.

Tanzania's Precision Air (PW), in addition to announcing its partnership with Vodacom Tanzania in launching M-Pesa - an innovative method of paying for one's air tickets using cellphone airtime - and having received a shot in the arm last week when 41% shareholder Kenya Airways (KQ) announced it would inject "between USD4 - 6million" into the carrier from its own USD80million loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to help aid the Tanzanian regional carrier's fleet expansion plans, today announced plans to resurrect its service to Harare, Zimbabwe albeit via Blantyre, Malawi, and not Lilongwe, Malawi, as originally intended.

After its recent acquisition by the Fly540 group of FastJet fame, flySAX, formerly East African Safari Air Express (B5), has just received its Fokker F28 (MSN: 11229 | 5Y-EEE) painted in the company's new colours, and ready for service.

East African Safari Air was an airline based in Kenya whose international operations were suspended in September 2004, though the airline still maintained scheduled regional and domestic services through its subsidiary East African Safari Air Express. In November 2010, East African Safari Air Express too, ceased operations shortly before being bought out completely by fly540 Group in December 2010.

■ ANGOLA: See Pics of Luanda Airport's New Domestic Terminal.

After the recent opening of the newly renovated Catumbela International Airport in the coastal city of Catumbela in Benguela Province, Angola’s airport and air traffic authority Empresa Nacional de Aeroportos e Navegação Aérea (ENANA), on Wednesday 29 August, marked yet another milestone in its infrastructural renovation programme with the opening by Angolan Minister of Transport, Augusto da SilvaTomás, of the new Domestic Terminal at Luanda's 4 de Fevereiro Airport, following extensive refurbishment and expansion by Portuguese contractors, Somague Engenharia.

► MAURITIUS: Emirates to go 14x weekly as Air Mauritius, Air Austral & Air Madagascar band together to survive.

Bucking the ongoing trend amongst European carriers of reducing their frequencies to the Indian Ocean island, Dubai based mega-carrier, Emirates (EK), has announced an increase in its weekly frequencies from 11x weekly to 12x weekly from 28 October 2012, with the route going 14x weekly from 28 November 2012.

Emirates: Dubai, UAE - Port Louis, Mauritius

- EK3705/3706 operate Day 23456 from 28 October 2012 until 27 November 2012

EK701 DXB 0310 – 0940 MRU 773 | 2457
EK3703 DXB 0310 – 0940 MRU 773 | 136
EK3705 DXB 1000 – 1645 MRU 773 | 1234567

EK3706 MRU 1820 – 0110+1 DXB 773 | 1234567
EK702 MRU 2320 – 0555+1 DXB 773 | 2457
EK3704 MRU 2320 – 0555+1 DXB 773 | 136

Source [Airline Route]

Germany's second largest airline, Air Berlin (AB) will, from 7 April, cease its twice weekly Airbus A330 flight from Munich, Germany to Mombasa, Kenya, adding yet another airline to the growing list of carriers pulling out of the Kenyan port city route, as the Eurozone crisis continues to hurt the pockets of Europeans, with African tourism experiencing a knock on effect.

Air Berlin: Munich, Germany - Mombasa, Kenya

AB7362 MUC 2105 - 0615+1 MBA 332 | 37 (ENDS 7 APRIL 2012)

As previously reported by The African Aviation Tribune, Congolese private carrier Equatorial Congo Airlines, better known as EC Air Congo (LC), last week Friday 24 August, inaugurated its first international route: a 3x weekly Brazzaville, Congo - Paris (Charles de Gaulle) service using a Boeing 757-200 leased from Switzerland's PrivatAir.

According to Amadeus, Fly540 Ghana (5G) is to venture further into the regional field when it launches flights from its Accra, Ghana hub to Sierra Leone, Cote d'Ivoire, Liberia and Nigeria all in quick succession

Mention is also made of a potential flight to Lomé, Togo in the future.

First to be launched will be Accra, Ghana - Freetown, Sierra Leone and Accra, Ghana - Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire on 3 September 2012, with Accra, Ghana - Monrovia, Liberia on 18 September 2012 and finally

Unconfirmed reports out of Ghana claim that Egyptian carrier, Egyptair (MS), having allegedly considered "other options" on the Ghanaian scene, are "in talks" to acquire "about a 50% stake" in the struggling Ghanaian domestic operator CTK CiTylinK Airlines (CTQ).

Of late, CiTylinK Airlines has been going through a very rough patch, having first suspended operations in early August before losing its leased Fokker 100 over unpaid leasing charges shortly after.

"Egypt Air will control 50 percent stake in the airline while majority shareholder, Tei Azu and other local investors will own the rest of the shares. Citi Business News also

► SOUTH AFRICA: Emirates cancels intended A380 service return to Johannesburg.

As a result of the introduction of a new A380 service to Singapore on a regular basis, the planned A380 service resumption on Dubai – Johannesburg EK761/762 from 01 December 2012, is cancelled. Consequently, Dubai - Johannesburg's service will remain unchanged henceforth (see below).

Emirates Airbus A380 (Emirates)

Emirates: Dubai, UAE - Johannesburg, South Africa
- Effective 28 October 2012 and onwards until further notice

Following a meeting of the board of directors of Air Mauritius (MK), Appalsamy Thomas, the current Chairman of Mauritius Telecom, and Andre Viljoen were elected Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Air Mauritius respectively.

Andre Viljoen (FM)

Viljoen was previously CEO of South African Airways from 2001 until 2004, before taking up the positionof Officer-in-Charge, Chief Finance Officer and Chief Information Officer at Air Mauritius. He joined the

Mozambican national carrier Linhas Aéreas de Moçambique, better known as LAM Mozambique Airlines (TM), has, via the Agência de Informação de Moçambique (the official Mozambique News Agency), announced it is to increase the frequency of its Embraer 190 operated flights between Maputo, Mozambique and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania from 2x weekly, to 3x weekly.

At present the reservation system does not reflect the update, but when it does, we will update this post

After a long delivery flight that was routed Tianjin - Changsha - Kunming - Kolkata - Ahmedabad - Abu Dhabi - Djibouti - Entebbe before finally arriving at Accra's Kotoka International Airport at 11.22am today, Ghana's Africa World Airlines (AW) new Embraer ERJ145 (c/n 14500996 | 9G-AET) was greeted with a traditional water cannon salute by the airport's fire department.

With a second Bae146-200 (aka AvroRJ 85) (MSN E2196 | OO-DJJ) having joined its fleet on Tuesday 28 August, George Forrest, the Belgian businessman and chairman of Korongo Airlines (ZC), the Lubumbashi based joint venture between Brussels Airlines (40.40%), Forrest Group (39.60%) and local DRC investors (20%), has announced that its next intended destinations within Congo are to be: Mbuji-Mayi (Eastern Kasai), Kolwezi (Katanga), followed by Goma (North Kivu) and Kisangani (Eastern Province).

Press reports out of Cape Town, South Africa state that tenders will soon be issued for flights to the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, part of a group of islands in the Mid/South Atlantic Ocean that includes Ascension Island and the islands of Tristan da Cunha, with the contract being awarded "next year."

Currently the island's only link to mainland anywhere is via a Royal Mail ship which sails from Cape Town twice monthly.

"The island will have open skies but it’s planned to start its own St Helena airline to provide regular scheduled services. Flights from Cape Town are expected to take three and a half hours. Tenders will be called for soon and a contract awarded early next year."

Source [IOL]

Before flights can start however, an airport will have to be constructed.

St Helena's remote location in the Atlantic.

After various delays, a contract was finally awarded to Italian construction firm Impregilo in 2008 with construction expected to last 3 years (2012 - 2015) and costing USD319million.

Originally planned to accommodate either Airbus A319s, Boeing 737-800s or Boeing 757-200s, a decision taken to shorten the runways length will invariably limit the airport to servicing Boeing 737-700s, which in turn will limit the variety of destinations served from St Helena to either Angola or Namibia with a full payload, or Cape Town and Johannesburg with a reduced payload.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Monday, September 10, 2012

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Friday, September 7, 2012

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Monday, September 3, 2012

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Friday, August 31, 2012

Thursday, August 30, 2012