● NIGERIA: Second Nigerian Business Aviation Conference set for March 2014.

Evergreen Apple Nigeria (EAN), the Lagos-based fully integrated business aviation services company, has confirmed the second Nigerian Business Aviation Conference, NBAC 2014, will be held on March 27, 2014. This year’s conference brought together over 100 international and African delegates from across the broad spectrum of business aviation, and it is anticipated that NBAC 2014 will once again attract HNWIs, OEMs, operators, financiers, lawyers, regulatory bodies and industry leaders. 2014 will see a doubling of delegate numbers bringing the total attendees to an anticipated 200.

► CAMEROON: Russia, Cameroon sign deal for undisclosed number of Mil Mi-17 choppers.

During the recently ended MAKS 2013 International Aviation & Space Salon held at Moscow's Ramenskoye Airport, Russia and Cameroon signed a deal for the delivery of an unspecified number of Mil Mi-17 helicopters for onward placement with the Cameroonian Air Force.

■ SENEGAL: Spain, Senegal agree to boost traffic frequencies between them.

The Spanish Ministry of Development, through the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (Dirección General de Aviación Civil - DGAC), has agreed with the Senegalese Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport to increase the number of weekly flights (round trip) that can be operated between the two countries, to twenty (20) - representing an increase of 13 frequencies between Spain and Senegal in the last eight months. The newly signed MoU supersedes the previous one signed in December 2012 which had provision for only 7-14 weekly frequencies.

■ SOUTH AFRICA: Comair Ltd moves to block FlySafair's launch on grounds of alien ownership.

South Africa's Comair Ltd has sought to reverse the recent issuance of a domestic operator's licence to Safair (FA) for its nascent startup LCC, FlySafair, claiming that it does not satisfy South African laws stipulating that domestic operators must be at least 75% owned by local South Africans. 

■ ETHIOPIA: More 787s for Ethiopian as Tewolde announces profits for FY2012/13 hit $140mln.

Despite the airliner's initial teething problems initial teeth problems and the grounding of one of its five B787-8s, (MSN 34744 | ET-AOP), at London Heathrow following a fire on-board, Ethiopian Airlines (ET) plans to add eight more of the aircraft to its fleet as part of its long term growth strategy dubbed Vision 2025.

■■ MAURITIUS: New Terminal 2 at SSR International Airport to be ready by August.

Built and ultimately to be managed on behalf of the Mauritian Government by Aeroports de Paris in collaboration with China State Construction Engineering Corporation, the new Terminal 2 at Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport in Plaisance, Mauritius is slated to be operational by early 2013. The new terminal is designed by ADPi, Architects and Engineers and Alain Davy, Architect. Built at a cost of MUR11billion (USD260million), 85 per cent of project is to be financed by a loan from the EXIM Bank of China to the Mauritius Port Authority at a concessionary rate of 2% for a period of 15 years.

► BRAZIL: TAM Lineas Aéreas, South African Airways sign codeshare deal.

As previously speculated about, South African Airways (SA) and Brazil's TAM Linhas Aéreas (JJ) have implemented a code share agreement in which SAA will place its designator code “SA” on flights operated by TAM from Sao Paulo to Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre, Curitiba, Brasília, Salvador, Florianopolis, Iguaçu Falls, Recife, Belo Horizonte. Likewise, TAM will place its designator code “JJ” on flights operated by SAA between Sao Paulo and Johannesburg, and to other cities within South Africa, namely, Cape Town, Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth. 

► GAMBIA: Titan Airways leasing Gambia Bird one of its B757-200s.

British charter specialists, Titan Airways (ZT), says it has been operating one of its two B757-200s (MSN 29308 | G-POWH) to Gambian carrier, Gambia Bird (3G), on a short-term ACMI lease contract.

■ SOUTH AFRICA: SAA Technical brokers deal with AUSA, breaks off talks with SATAWU over alleged incidents of violence.

South African Airways Technical (SAAT), the maintenance subsidiary of the national carrier, South African Airways (SAA), has resolved part of an ongoing strike with the signing of a wage deal with the Aviation Union of Southern Africa (AUSA), said to represent "a large portion of engineers and technical staff at SAAT", on Wednesday August 28, 2013. However, negotiations with the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU) have now been called off following what SAA called "striking SATAWU members’ disregard of the picketing rules and intensified unruly behaviour."

■ CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Bangui M'poko Int'l Airport resumes partial operations following disturbances.

Bangui's Mpoko International Airport has been partially reopened with some flights cleared to land after the tarmac was inundated with Central African citizens fleeing marauding Seleka rebels who had gone on the rampage in the neighbouring Boeing quarter.

► CHINA: Kenya Airways announces Guangzhou as début 777-300ER route due in mid November.

Kenya Airways (KQ) is set to launch 3x weekly direct flights from its Nairobi hub to Guanghzhou, China this year using its new Boeing 777-300ER. The aircraft, the first in the fleet, is due in East Africa in mid October in time for its deployment on November 19. At the moment, Kenya Airways flies to Guangzhou via Bangkok, daily.

► INDONESIA: Fadel confirms Egyptair's new Jakarta route as a request for St. Catherine flights is put in.

Egyptair's (MS) previously outlined plans for a service to the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, are one step closer to reality following a recent meeting between the Egyptian Minister of Civil Aviation, Abdel Aziz Fadel, and Mr Nurfaizi Suwandi, the Indonesian Ambassador to Egypt in which an agreement pertaining to the route (operated via Kuala Lumpur) is set to start operating from December 2.

► LIBYA: Air Libya, Chapman Freeborn sign deal for placement, operation of an An-26F in Libya.

Chapman Freeborn Airchartering has announced the formation of an exclusive partnership with Air Libya (7Q) to place and operationally manage an Antonov An-26 transport in Libya. The freighter will be based out of Tripoli’s Mitiga International Airport (MJI) on a long-term lease agreement with immediate effect.

► SIERRA LEONE: Freetown now pitching to Ethiopian in the hopes of establishing direct flights to Addis Ababa.

The West African nation of Sierra Leone has taken its aviation road show to Ethiopia where the Sierra Leonean Ambassador to Ethiopia, Mr Andrew Gbebay Bangali, has held talks with Ethiopian Airlines (ET) vice president for Alliances and Corporation and Strategic Planning, Mr Yissehak Zewoldi, regarding the possibility of direct flights between Addis Ababa and Freetown. 

► SENEGAL: BinterCanarias begins weekly Las Palmas - Dakar flights from mid October.

Binter Canarias (NT), the Gran Canaria-based Spanish regional operator, has announced the launch of a once weekly service to the Senegalese capital, Dakar, effective October 14. The direct flights will operate onboard leased Air Nostrum (YW) CRJ200s.

■ TANZANIA: Air Tanzania streamlines its operations with hefty staff lay-offs.

National carrier, Air Tanzania (TC), has joined the growing list of Tanzanian airlines that have been forced to trim their workforces down with reports that 128 out its original 300-strong staff have now been let go.

► NIGERIA: Med-View Airline granted regional, international traffic rights; eyes Dubai by year end.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has reportedly granted Kano-based Med-View Airline (VL) regional and international traffic rights with flights to Dubai to launch before year end, the airline's managing director, Alhaji Muneer Bankole, has announced.

► TANZANIA: fastjet to start 3x weekly Dar es Salaam - Mbeya flights from November.

As previously reported, fastjet (FN) has announced the launch of flights from Dar es Salaam to Mbeya (Songwe airport) with effect from November 1. The route will operate 3x weekly on-board an Airbus A319. Reservations will open this week.

► COMOROS: New Qatari-American start-up, Ola, also eyeing the Indianocéanie market.

The Indian Ocean region is set to see a battle of the start-ups with news that a new Qatari-American backed carrier, Ola, is planning to pre-empt the launch Air Austral's (UU) own start-up, Ewa. Ewa is set to take to the skies in November of this year using an ATR72-500.

■ MOZAMBIQUE: LAM posts strong rise in revenue, pax numbers for H1.

Mozambique's national carrier, LAM - Linhas Aéreas de Moçambique (TM), has announced an 8% rise in its revenues for the first half of its 2013 Financial Year buoyed by the highest July passenger traffic the airline has seen since its inception in 1980, airline managing director, Marlene Manave, has announced.