NEW GAMBIAN LINK TO EUROPE?
A Russian airline is proposing a series of flights between Moscow and Banjul in the Gambia after receiving fifth freedom rights to operate the flight via Geneva in Switzerland. According to Nfansu Bojang, Director General of the Gambia Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Euro Airline has been awarded provisional approval to the launch the flight later this year.
INTERNATIONAL TAKE-OFF IN NIGERIA
Akwa Ibom Airport, located on the southern coast of Nigeria and serving the city of Uyo, can add the word International to its title after the first overseas flight departed the facility. The flight was operated by a Boeing 737-900 of Sky Airline over the weekend of January 8/9, the first of a series of charters transporting pilgrims. The airport was opened in December 2009 and was initially linked to Abuja and Lagos by Arik Air, but Dana Air now provides service to the two destinations, carrying just under 100,000 passengers in 2010, according to Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority data.
MORE DAR ES SALAAM ROTATIONS
British Airways is to boost capacity on flights between Tanzania and the UK with the introduction of a fourth weekly London Heathrow – Dar es Salaam flight between May 30 and September 26. The airline currently dominates traffic between the two countries, operating the only direct service on the route, although there are also large traffic flows on Emirates Airline’s flights via Dubai and Kenya Airways via Nairobi. More than 110,500 O+D passengers travelled between Tanzania and the UK between November 2009 and November 2010, according to IATA BSP data.
FLYING THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE
A start-up company is planning to launch flights this year linking South Africa’s Golden Triangle, according to local media reports. Durban-based Velvet Sky is due to launch flights during the coming year and is currently advertising for cockpit and cabin staff via a third party website. Details about the company are very limited but reports suggest it will offer flights to both Cape Town and Johannesburg, two of the busiest domestic markets in the country. There is already a lot of competition on these two routes with 120 weekly frequencies on the Durban – Cape Town route and a massive 241 weekly flights between Durban and Johannesburg (Flightbase, January 14-20), and the airline will have to differentiate itself from existing operators - either through price or service – to win market share on the routes.
SAA PREPARES FOR A330-200 ARRIVAL
South African Airways (SAA) is planning to place the first of its Airbus A330-200s into commercial passenger service in February. The airline is leasing six aircraft from Aircastle this year and will use them on flights from both Cape Town and Johannesburg. According to a preliminary schedule, the first aircraft will enter service on the domestic Johannesburg – Cape Town route from February 14, before being transferred to international duties from February 28, initially on the Johannesburg – London Heathrow route. As additional aircraft are delivered the type will also be introduced on flights from Johannesburg to Accra, Buenos Aires, Mumbai and Sao Paulo and from Cape Town to London Heathrow.
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