Page 25 - World Airnews Magazine December 2020

TRAVEL AIRLINES

CALLS FOR MORE DOMESTIC FLY540 GOES GLOBAL

AIRLINES INCREASE

his follows a decision by the Kenya
GH¢800 and GHC 900. serve the growing domestic and regional TCivil Aviati on Authority (KCAA) to

PassionAir and AWA, for instance, oper- aviation market. grant Fly 540’s application to expand its air

he increasing demand for ate 20 flights per day between Accra and The airports operator, Ghana Airports services to other African countries and the

Tdomestic air travel, brought on by Kumasi - the busiest domestic route. Company Limited (GACL), has invested United Arab Emirates for the next three years.

the need for safe, less crowded, efficient However, some travellers said they were about (US) $400 million in constructing a “Notice is given that the Kenya Civil

means of transport and increased unable to secure seats to Kumasi and Tama- new airport at Ho, rehabilitating the Wa Aviation Authority has made decisions on

political activity, has led to calls for more le respectively on either airline last Friday aerodrome, and the construction of a new applications for air service licences whose

domestic airlines. and Tuesday respectively. Terminal, Terminal 3, at the Kotoka Interna- particulars were previously published in the

tional Airport (KIA).

Kenya Gazette,” said the regulator in a notice.
The inactivity of Unity Air since the Industry data show that in 2019, a

Fly540 will now operate international
The regulator has also spent significant

resumption of domestic flight operations total of 16,499 people travelled by air sums in the acquisition of navigational scheduled air services for passengers,

domestically.

post-COVID-19 lockdown on May 1, 2020, equipment for the Ho, Wa, Tamale and
has also meant limited available seats for ATTEMPTS AT REVIVING DEFUNCT cargo and mail to and from South Africa, Nigeria-based cargo airline Allied Air of flight bookings.

the domestic market. DOMESTIC AIRLINES Kumasi airports in recent times. Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia and the has also been granted a licence to operate The airline postponed the move to

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from

The indigenous airline became the first The aviation industry regulator, Ghana THE DEMISE OF LOCAL AIRLINES Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) flights between Lagos and Nairobi, with November 29 but with rising cases of

casualty of the COVID-19pandemic. It has Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), has Antrak Air and City Link led the growth of and Wilson Airport. routing flights to JKIA from Cairo, Douala, Covid-19 across the world, analysts remain

been inactive since the resumption of do- held meetings with management of domestic air travel in the country more The airline will also fly to Somalia, Sudan, Luanda, Johannesburg, Bangui, Windhoek scepti cal.

mestic flight operations and doesn’t seem dormant airlines to ascertain the than a decade ago. They were later joined Ethiopia and Dubai as well as return to and Abidjan among others. Low-cost carrier Jambojet recently

ready to restart operations. challenges and support they require by Fly 540, Starbow and Africa World regional routes including Zanzibar and The aviation sector has been among resumed operations to its domestic

The procurement process for the acquisi- to restart operations. Airlines (AWA). Dar-es-Salam. the hardest hit as countries across the destinations, including Mombasa, Eldoret,

tion of two Embraer 145’s for the airline to Though there are 13 Ghanaian valid A combination of managerial fragilities, KCAA further granted new licences and world closed their borders and blocked Kisumu and Malindi from Nairobi.

augment its single aircraft was also aborted Air Operators Certificate (AOC) holders - difficult operating environment, lack international travel. Although bookings are yet to hit the levels

after the current pandemic derailed its which allows them to operate domestic of financial muscle in a cash-intensive renewed existing ones for 28 local and Last month, national carrier Kenya before the pandemic, the airline is banking
projections. and regional passenger and cargo industry, and poor equipment choice are regional airlines, in a year most carriers Airways was forced to backtrack on a plan on increased traffic from domestic tourists

are suffering the brunt of the Covid-19

“We were in the process of acquir- flights - as at March 2018, only seven but a few of the challenges that brought pandemic. to resume direct flights to JFK Airport in during next month’s festive season. Q

ing two Embraer 145’s, but due to the are active. most of the domestic operators to New York following increased cancellation
COVID-19, everything has been put on A further eight airlines which hold valid their knees.
hold for now,” a source close to the abort- Air Carrier Licences (ACL) are working with City Link suspended operations five

ed deal said. the regulator toward attaining an AOC years ago due to various reasons. Fly 540

Though PassionAir and Africa World to enable them start their operations. - a part of African Airline Group, FASTJET Expect more.

Airlines (AWA) have increased frequency However, some have stalled the process by - also in May 2014 suspended all opera-
in response to demand, the lack of more their inability to meet stringent regulatory tions and said, “The company intends to

travelling options by air in-country has led requirements. fully focus on the considerable potential

to a significant increase in airfares. The need for such a meeting became of opportunities in East and Southern

An Accra-Tamale return flight now costs imperative given the growing investment Africa, and this legacy 540 operation is

about GH¢950; Accra-Kumasi and Accra-Ta- in on ground airport infrastructure, but not, therefore, part of the core low-cost

koradi return flights now cost between there are not enough active airlines to FASTJET model”. Q

AIRLINES
AIR ZIMBABWE MAKES
KEY APPOINTMENT
A statement by Air Zimbabwe said travel and tourism industry who include

Matilda had traversed the length and regulatory authorities, travel agents, More information from your aircraft, better insights,

atilda Simboti has been breadth of Airline marketing and ground tour operators and other industry

Mappointed Air Zimbabwe operations. associates. enabling well-informed decisions - Spider X delivers.

acting sales and marketing manager. She also briefly served in Lubumbashi, In 2015 she was awarded the Traverze

In a statement, the national carrier DRC before being transferred to head the Award for the Most Supportive Airline Join the revolution today: www.spidertracks.com/spiderx

said Simboti has a vast wealth of expe- commercial business and ground opera- Staff in Zimbabwe and in 2018 she

rience having worked in the industry tions in the tourist hub in Victoria Falls. scooped the Association of Zimbabwe

for over 30 years. She has a few several Matilda has built very strong relations Travel Agents (AZTA) Award for her Out-
major awards along the way. with key stakeholders in the Airline, standing Service to the Industry. Q
World Airnews | December 2020 World Airnews | December 2020
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