Flydubai, the Dubai-based carrier, announced a new partnership with Air Canada to give customers flying between Canada, the Middle East, East Africa, Indian Subcontinent and Southern Asia more convenient travel options.

Pending final regulatory approval, Air Canada’s marketing code will be placed on nine routes operated from Dubai by flydubai, giving customers the ability to travel to these markets with the issuance of a single ticket. The nine routes include Bahrain, Dammam, Jeddah, Madinah and Muscat in the GCC as well as to Colombo and Karachi in the Indian Subcontinent.

Additionally, through an interline arrangement, customers will be able to seamlessly connect in Dubai to more than 60 destinations that flydubai flies to in the Middle East, East Africa and Southern Asia – including Djibouti, Kathmandu and the Maldives. Of these destinations, more than 30 are unique to flydubai and not flown by other partners of Air Canada.

Commenting on the codeshare announcement, Hamad Obaidalla, Chief Commercial Officer at flydubai, said: “we are very pleased to be adding Air Canada to our list of partners and to offer their passengers a seamless travel experience on the flydubai network. We look forward to growing this partnership that offers passengers the benefits and the convenience of connecting via the Dubai aviation hub and we look forward to welcoming them on board soon.”

Mark Galardo, Executive Vice President, Revenue and Network Planning at Air Canada, said: “Air Canada is very pleased to partner with flydubai, further expanding our connectivity to the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent, a growing source of immigration and travel to Canada. This new partnership is a perfect complement to Air Canada’s nonstop service to Dubai from Toronto and Vancouver, and growing our relationship with Emirates, flydubai’s codeshare partner. Together we look forward to bringing together our networks and building a better experience for our customers.”

The airlines also plan on further improving the connection process in Dubai and are working toward introducing expanded features and benefits for one another’s loyalty programme members to be announced later this year.
Seats are available for sale now at aircanada.com, via Air Canada’s Contact Centres, and through travel agents.

SOURCE: flydubai

Kenya Airways (KQ) will operate an SAF-powered flight on Africa Day as part of The Sustainable Flight Challenge (TSFC) by SkyTeam. This is a friendly competition between SkyTeam members to promote sustainability and make air travel greener.

This year, TSFC has extended the invitation to alliance members as it seeks to spearhead environmental change. Kenya Airways will work with its subsidiary Jambojet to discover several solutions that can reduce aviation’s impact on the environment by improving sustainability.

KQ’s SAF-powered flight

As part of the sustainability challenge, KQ will operate a flight powered by Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), which is expected to provide essential data and insights that can determine policy decisions, industry regulations, and best practices related to the use of SAF.

The pilot flight will be operated on May 25, 2023, on the return flight between Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta (NBO) and Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS). This will be a very significant milestone for the airline and the continent.Kenya Airways will deploy its Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner on the flight. On the same day, the continent will celebrate African unity and development, with milestones like this set to be part of its future. KQ Group CEO and Managing Director Allan Kilavuka said;

“As an aviation industry, it is our responsibility to ensure that we are actively playing a critical role geared towards solutions and shared learning for sustainable solutions and practices in our industry. This year as our red tail goes green again, we aim to support the industry in achieving net-zero by 2050. We are committed to adopting better practices and creating partnerships with people of similar vision.”

Starting in 2025, all flights taking off from European airports must incorporate a portion of Sustainable Aviation Fuels. Kenya Airways seeks to leverage the industry-wide SAF momentum to unlock competitive advantages in the African aviation market.

SkyTeam and TSFC

SkyTeam is one of the world’s leading airline alliances, with 19 members. Kenya Airways has been a part of SkyTeam since 2007 and is the only African airline in the alliance. KQ and 21 other airlines will participate in the second edition of The Sustainable Flight Challenge.

Launched in 2022, TSFC has returned, and it will take place between May 15 and 28. It is the only sustainability initiative of its kind, aiming to drive meaningful change in the short term.

In the name of “friendly competition,” participating airlines will be challenged to operate their flights as sustainably as possible, above and below wing, from pushback to parking stand. After the competition, airlines will share their innovations and solutions to enhance sustainability.

There are seven categories with awards for the lowest CO2 emissions, greatest CO2 reduction, lowest CO2 emissions ground operations, best in-flight waste management, best collaboration, best adoption, and the best innovation. All qualifying flights have to be part of the airline’s existing network.

Kenya Airways’ commitment to sustainability

The winners of the 2023 sustainability challenge will be recognized in October, with Kenya Airways looking to bring some awards home. The airline will focus on the six essential categories, including e-mobility for passengers and travel light policies.

KQ is fully committed and invested in helping the industry achieve sustainable growth through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program. CSR highlights its dedication to economic, environmental, and social issues.

Through this, the airline will support activities in education, environment conservation, community well-being, health, water and sanitation, and disaster and humanitarian relief. CSR will be the pillar of reliability, efficiency, and sustainable development in Africa.

KQ has completed various projects at schools and community centers in Africa. Its commitment to education is driven by the belief that a solid educational foundation will ensure that young people are appropriately skilled for the demanding job market.

Source: Simple Flying

Planning to visit the UAE soon? How about you land in Abu Dhabi, spend two weeks visiting everything all the seven emirates have to offer, and then fly out of Dubai, that too on the same ticket?

This has just been made possible after two of the country’s largest carriers – Abu Dhabi’s Etihad and Dubai’s Emirates – entered into an agreement that will further boost tourism in the country and at the same time enhance a tourist’s experience.

This interline agreement is the first of its kind between the two airlines, which are both on a rapid expansion spree to new destinations and have burgeoning order books ready to take on additional capacity.

“This summer, customers of each airline will be able to purchase a single ticket to fly into either Dubai or Abu Dhabi, with a seamless return via the other airport. The new agreement also provides travellers planning to explore the UAE with the flexibility of one-stop ticketing for their full journey and convenient baggage check-in,” the airlines said in a statement.

How will it work?

In the initial stages of the expanded interline, each carrier will focus on attracting visitors to the UAE by developing inbound interline traffic from select points in Europe and China. The arrangement will allow visitors to cover as much ground as possible when exploring Abu Dhabi, Dubai or any other emirate, saving time by removing the need to fly home via their arrival airport.

Customers travelling into the UAE also have the option of ‘multi-city flights’, with the choice to travel from one city on both carriers’ networks, and conveniently returning to another point served by either Emirates or Etihad.

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed at Arabian Travel Market by Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer, and Mohammad Al Bulooki, Chief Operating Officer, Etihad Airways, in the presence of Sir Tim Clark, President, Emirates Airline, and Antonoaldo Neves, Etihad CEO.

Tim Clark said: “We are pleased to be working again with Etihad Airways – this time to allow each carrier to offer a new range of seamless travel options in and out of the UAE. Emirates and Etihad are leveraging on our strengths to expand our respective customer offerings and boost UAE tourism. We believe this new agreement provides a strong foundation to develop further opportunities between both airlines and is an example of our commitment to the UAE’s vision for continued economic diversification.”

Antonoaldo Neves added: “We’re delighted to partner with Emirates in our shared mission to support inbound tourism to the UAE and facilitate travel to our vibrant cities. With two world-class airlines supporting UAE tourism, our interline agreement will make it more convenient for our guests to experience the best of Abu Dhabi and Dubai on one single ticket while promising to deliver an exceptional flying experience whether they fly with Etihad Airways or Emirates. It’s a win-win proposition for travellers to the UAE.”

Tourism push

The expanded interline partnership draws upon the commitment of both airlines to support the UAE government’s objective to promote tourism to the country and enhance its position as a preferred global destination. Tourism is one of the key pillars of the UAE economy and is expected to contribute 5.4 per cent of the nation’s total GDP, or Dh116.1 billion, supporting over one million jobs by 2027, according to figures from the Emirates Tourism Council.

Dubai welcomed 4.67 million international overnight visitors in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 3.97 million tourists during the same period in 2022, a 17 per cent year-on-year growth and the city’s best Q1 performance since the pandemic.

Abu Dhabi, meanwhile, has announced plans to attract more than 24 million visitors to the emirate by the end of 2023. The emirate received 18 million visitors in 2022, a 13 per cent increase over the previous year.

Expanding reach

Earlier this week, Emirates signed MoUs on the sidelines of Arabian Travel Market with Indonesia’s Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, the Moroccan National Tourism Office and Tourism Authority of Zimbabwe to promote inbound travel and boost visitor numbers. It signed similar agreements with authorities in Seychelles, Mauritius and the Sri Lanka as well.

The airline recently also activated its codeshare with US-based United, allowing Emirates customers to enjoy easier access to an expanded choice of US destinations. Emirates customers can now fly to three of America’s biggest business hubs – Chicago, Houston or San Francisco – and connect easily to an expansive network of domestic US points on flights operated by United.

Emirates has boosted operations by 31 per cent (total ASKMs) since the start of its financial year and has further plans to ramp up seat capacity.

“Customer demand has been very strong, and our forward bookings are also robust. Emirates is working hard on several fronts – to bring back operating capacity as quickly as the ecosystem can manage, while also upgrading our fleet and product to ensure our customers always enjoy the best possible Emirates experience,” Adnan Kazim said in an earlier statement.

The airline also plans to scale up its A380 operations with the reintroduction of the double-decker across its network, including Glasgow, Casablanca, Beijing, Shanghai, Nice, Birmingham, Kuala Lumpur, and Taipei.

It is also expanding services to several destinations such as Amsterdam, Athens, Budapest, London, Venice, Cairo, Dar es Salaam, Brisbane, Christchurch, Melbourne, Sydney, Bangkok, Beijing, Hong Kong, among others. The airline is also starting services to Montreal, and expanding capacity to Toronto.

The carrier also has plans to place more aircraft orders to meet growing demand.

“We will probably order more in the next few months on top of what we already have,” Tim Clark said earlier this week, adding that Emirates is extending the life of its existing A380 super jumbo and 777 fleets due to long lead times for aircraft deliveries.

Etihad, too, entered into partnerships with as many as six airlines earlier this year. It launched reciprocal interline partnerships with three new airline partners – Philippine Airlines, Austrian Airlines and Airlink South Africa, while re-launching interline links with Biman Bangladesh and codeshares with Air Seychelles and ITA Airways.

The airline also announced a new direct service to Lisbon for the first time, and said it will return to Málaga on the Spanish Costa del Sol and the popular Greek island of Mykonos this summer.

The airline will be offering travellers nearly 160 weekly flights to 21 destinations in Europe this summer, with 20 per cent more seats available than in 2022. Earlier, it had also announced plans to resume its A380 services this summer after heavy demand, with four super-jumbos pressed into service on the London Heathrow route.

Etihad aims to triple the number of passengers it carriers to 30 million and nearly double its fleet to 150 planes by the end of the decade, the airline’s chief said in an interview last month.

Convenience is key

Earlier this week, Etihad signed an agreement with technology firm Astra Tech that allows customers to make flight bookings using artificial intelligence within chat app Botim.

Under the deal between Etihad and Astra Tech, the airline’s clients will be able to book flights just by typing in the basic details of the service they require, with the technology then completing the booking itself.

Old pals

This is the second time the airlines have announced a collaboration. In 2018, Emirates Group Security and Etihad Aviation Group signed an MoU to strengthen aviation security, including the sharing of information and intelligence in operational areas both within and outside the UAE.

Last year, Emirates signed an MoU with the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi, to boost tourist numbers to the UAE capital from key source markets across the airline’s global network.

Source: Gulf News

Air Canada has resumed Montreal to Cairo. The first summer-seasonal service of 2023 left Canada in early May, with the last from Egypt planned for October 27th.

Air Canada launched the route in 2021, 12 years after EgyptAir ended it. Revolving around the Egyptian diaspora in Montreal and connections over Montreal in particular, Air Canada and EgyptAir – both Star Alliance carriers – codeshare, including beyond each other’s hubs.

Air Canada is back in Cairo

On May 2nd, Air Canada relaunched the 5,436-mile (8,748 km) link from Montreal, its second-largest hub, to Egypt’s capital. It is Air Canada’s third African destination from Montreal, alongside Algiers and Casablanca, also focused on diaspora.

Operating thrice weekly, Cairo will see both the 255-seat Boeing 787-8 and – much more frequently, crucially through the peak summer – the 298-seat 787-9.

The 787-9 has 30 seats in Signature, 21 in premium economy, and 247 in regular economy. The -9 variant provides 10 more business seats (+50%) than the smaller -8 and 33 more in economy (+15%).

Now mainly by the 787-9

Since launching in June 2021, the route has almost always been operated by the smaller 787-8, but it will now primarily see the 787-9.

As Air Canada mainly had four weekly flights last summer, against three now, capacity has been reduced by 126 weekly seats (double for both ways).

One fewer roundtrip will, of course, nicely reduce the route’s operating expenses, while the bigger aircraft will reduce seat-mile costs. Hopefully, yields will improve somewhat from fewer seats for sale and more business. When combined with lower costs, performance will hopefully improve further.

What’s the schedule?

It is scheduled as follows, with all times local:

• Cairo to Montreal: AC74, 17:30-10:55+1 (10h 25m block time)
• Montreal to Cairo: AC75, 12:40-16:50 (11h 10m)

Where do passengers go?

According to Cirium data supplied by airlines, Air Canada had 49,568 roundtrip Montreal-Cairo seats last year. Relating that to booking data suggests it achieved a very strong seat load factor of 94%, helped, of course, by only being summer-seasonal.

Passengers in 2022 can be broken down as flying this:

• To/from Cairo, transiting Montreal: ~56% of passengers
• Point-to-point: (i.e., only between Montreal and Cairo): 35%
• Transiting Montreal and Cairo (‘bridging’): ~5%
• To/from Montreal, transiting Cairo: ~4%

Cairo over Montreal to Toronto was #1

Of the largest category (those transiting Montreal), booking data shows that flying to/from the US was the most popular market, then across wider Canada.

When broken down by airport, Cairo over Montreal to/from Toronto was the leading market, despite EgyptAir’s daily non-stop. It was presumably cheaper to connect in Montreal with Air Canada than to pay the premium for a non-stop. EgyptAir codeshares with Air Canada on Montreal-Toronto.

The next most popular airport-level origin and destination was Cairo-Los Angeles. Booking data suggests that Air Canada carried just under 3,000 roundtrip Los Angeles passengers over Montreal. When split over 190 flights (two ways) last summer, each flight had around 15 passengers traveling to/from California airport.

From Doha, the airline will fly to Casablanca and Marrakesh with a single flight.

Qatar Airways is enhancing its international route network by resuming flights to two significant Moroccan cities. From June 30, the airline will serve Casablanca and Marrakesh from its Doha Hamad International Airport (DOH) base.

Qatar Airways will operate four weekly flights to Casablanca Mohammed V International (CMN) and Marrakesh Menara International (RAK) airports on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Passengers on this route will experience Qatar’s exquisite service on the Boeing 787-8 with a 22 business class and 232 economy class configuration. The flight schedule is as follows:

Flight QR1397:

• Departs DOH at 09:15 and arrives at CMN at 15:10.
• Departs CMN at 16:30 and arrives at RAK at 17:25.

Flight QR1398:

• Departs RAK at 18:55 and arrives at CMN at 19:45.
• Departs CMN at 21:20 and arrives at DOH at 06:30+1 local time.

Increased connectivity

With the addition of Casablanca and Marrakesh, passengers can now enjoy connectivity to over 160 destinations on the airline’s global network. Marrakesh is the fourth-largest city in Morocco and one of the four imperial cities. Tourists admire it for its diversity and rich heritage.

Casablanca is the largest city in Morocco and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in North Africa. It is famous for its blend of “old” and “new,” with an appeal that showcases modern infrastructure while retaining traditional Moroccan architecture.

Qatar and Morocco have had a great diplomatic relationship for years, with Qatar being one of Morocco’s largest foreign investors. The two countries were brought even closer by the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The North African nation reached the semi-finals, which saw a record number of Moroccans visiting Qatar during the tournament. Qatar Airways CEO Mr Akbar Al Baker said;

“The Qatar Airways’ flights to Casablanca and Marrakesh solidify our commitment to the Moroccan market and meet a strong demand for connectivity to these two beautiful and historic cities. The FIFA World Cup 2022TM brought Qatar and Morocco together through football and bolstered our cultural and economic cohesion. Connecting through our Hamad International Airport offers passengers an unparalleled 5-star travel experience to over 160 destinations and continues to grow and expand our network.”

Summer schedule

Qatar Airways will operate flights to Casablanca throughout the summer season. On the other hand, Marrakesh will be served as a seasonal tag, with flights from June 30 to September 11. The airline’s customers can also enjoy more travel options between Doha and Casablanca through its codeshare partnership with Royal Air Maroc.

With world air travel close to pre-pandemic levels, Qatar Airways continues to expand its roots in Africa. However, a recent unfortunate turn of events has led to the suspension of some African destinations.

Due to the unrest in Sudan, the airline has discontinued its service to the North African nation. Sudan has closed its airspace, and QR announced that it would not be operating any flights on the Doha-Khartoum and Khartoum-Doha routes indefinitely. The closure of the Sudanese airspace has significantly affected many airlines as they have to reroute flights around the continent.

Source: Simple Flying

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), projects that airlines will earn $4.7b in profits off gross industry revenues of $779b in 2023.

As the global aviation industry emerges from the deep impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, the world’s airlines are projected to post their first profits since 2019. Globally, airlines lost $7b in 2022, an amazing comeback from the $42b they lost in 2021 and sh138b the year before.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), projects that airlines will earn $4.7b in profits off gross industry revenues of $779b in 2023. That will be driven by a more rational approach to Covid-19 restrictions, higher levels of vaccination against the virus and a better match between capacity and demand for travel.

Because of a large domestic sector and earlier easing of internal pandemic controls, North America is leading the return to profitability. North American airlines were expected to post a profit last year. It will be followed by Europe and the Middle East this year. All factors remaining constant, airlines in Latin America, Africa and the Asia Pacific region, could see their first profit, post-pandemic, from 2024 onwards.

For startups like Uganda Airlines, the Covid-19 pandemic could not have come at a worse time. The global lockdowns set in a mere six months after the airline had started commercial operations. When the breaks were suddenly pulled on international travel, network development, passenger traffic and revenues all took a hit. All the initial business assumptions on which Uganda Airlines’ performance projections were based, were also turned on their head.

It had been projected that the carrier would be operating 16 routes at the end of the first year; only 10 had been activated at the time lockdowns intensified in March 2020. To date, only 11 routes, including a single intercontinental route are operational instead of 18, including three international routes. Besides shredding revenue projections, the lockdowns and the conflict in Ukraine, also imposed unexpected costs on the carrier. Globally, the average cost of jet fuel as a proportion of airline costs during 2022, doubled to 24%. As an Africa-based operator without a hedging scheme, Uganda Airlines saw much steeper fuel- cost escalation.

Despite that turbulent start, the business is now looking up as travel restrictions ease and air travel normalizes. The schedule has recovered and in the near future, operations are expected to revert to pre-Covid-19 levels. We are actively pursuing network expansion and there will be some exciting announcements soon.

The gap between the projections and performance is also narrowing. During fiscal 2021/22, some 218,788 passengers were carried against a target of 383,486 passengers. Although that was 43% short of target, it represented a 148% increase in passenger numbers over the 2020/21 accounting period. At the operational level, (the number of routes in operation),     the shortfall was 29%.

Over the same period, we saw a 172% increase in passenger revenues relative to fiscal 2020/2021 and the budgeted shortfall on active routes only was 25%. The passenger load factor improved by seven points to reach 45%. Revenues from charter operations expanded 115% over 2020/2021.

Reason for optimism?

Uganda Airlines fortunes are closely tied to the performance of Africa as a region. That is because most of its and nearly 87% of its frequencies are within Africa.

Tourism data also shows that Uganda sources 80% of its tourists from Africa. By inference, better performance by Africa implies better prospects for Uganda Airlines. According to IATA statistics for December 2022, African airline traffic grew 118.8% over the previous year. Their combined share of the global market rose to 2.1% from 1.9% in 2021.

The carrier will, therefore, see stronger passenger performance as it expands its African network and integrates it with new routes to Asia and Europe to achieve its hub and spoke. Flying to West Africa is going to be important in this regard. The opening up by China after years of tight restrictions also bodes well for global travel and Uganda Airlines. The   regional points will feed our global network and that is the big picture.

Value of aviation to the Ugandan economy

While air transport’s contribution to Uganda’s economy has not been comprehensively studied, aggregate figures from elsewhere, provide a rough picture of its potential contribution; the contribution of aviation is usually fused under the transport sector. In 2019 for instance, with Africa accounting for only 3% of global passenger traffic, aviation contributed $63b to the continent’s GDP and employed 6.2m people.

According to studies by IATA, air transport contributed $3.2b or 4.6% of Kenya’s GDP and supported 410,000 jobs in 2017. That output was based on the 4.8 million foreign passengers that passed through Kenya that year. The sector’s contribution was projected to expand to $11.3b, supporting an estimated 859,000 jobs by 2037, if market trends were to remain constant.

At the end of 2017, Kenya was connected to 67 destinations served by 32 airlines. The corresponding figures for Uganda are 27 destinations in 17 countries served by 17 scheduled carriers.

In Uganda, at least 1.5 million passengers travelled to the country by air in 2022. Uganda Airlines accounted for about a third of that figure. The airline also employed 500 people, only 14% of them expatriates. The airline also contributed sh14b to tax revenues and spent close to sh1.2b in payments to local suppliers.

Profit or loss?

While the public conversation about Uganda Airlines tends to paint a grim picture, the numbers above tell a different story. They show that the airline is on a positive trajectory and is indeed clawing back lost territory. It is also important to remember that the airline is still in the investment phase and at this point, costs will outpace revenues.

Airline profitability and loss come at two levels – operational and absolute. Uganda Airlines will continue to post losses at the absolute level because of the imbalance between fixed costs – which decline over the longer term, and the revenue curve in the short term.

Operationally, the airline has been financing some of its operations from revenues generated from passenger operations. Short of unexpected shocks, the airline should achieve operational break-even within the next two to three years, as operations are optimised and market penetration increases.

The major source of cost escalation for Uganda Airlines during the past three years has been stunted passenger growth because of external factors, fleet maintenance costs and sharp increases in the price of aviation fuel because of Ukraine tensions.

African airlines are, however, exposed to much higher prices for aviation fuel because in 2022, refineries were charging African customers a margin of $50. On average, African airlines pay 30% more per litre of fuel, than their counterparts elsewhere. There is good news here, that through African Airlines Association (AFRAA)

Uganda Airlines costs are expected peak this year before starting a gradual decline from next 2024. The major drivers of cost escalation will be the launch of long-haul routes to Europe and the Far-East. However, a rationalized and better integrated network, increased traffic, and better aircraft utilization, will drive costs down.

Source: New Vision

Air Tanzania Company Limited and Kenya Airways top officials have met to discuss the possibility for a cargo transportation collaboration aiming to increase value and reduce operating coasts.

Kenya Airways Group managing director Allan Kilavuka, who visited Tanzania recently, said in a statement that the two airlines could cooperate in different areas, particularly in cargo transportation. With the arrival of Air Tanzania’s first cargo plane, a 54-ton Boeing 767-300 freighter, the two flag-carriers aim to increase value and reduce operating costs by utilizing their available freight, equipment, and expertise effectively.

“The African market alone is very large and requires cooperation to exploit it, especially the service of transporting passengers and cargo,” said Air Tanzania’s managing director Ladislaus Matindi. He said cooperation areas include the exchange of expertise and conducting practical training without relying on foreign countries in order to increase operational efficiency.

The new cargo plane will come at the right time as demand continues to rise due to growing trade and commercial activities. The collaboration between the two companies is expected to create commercial opportunities and meet the demands of the global market for cargo transportation, including perishable products and other items that are expected to be transported from Tanzania, including general cargo services, chicks and fish, pharma services, newspapers and magazines, valuable cargo, express parcels, postal and courier services, hazard materials, and human remains.

Kenya Airways and South African Airways announced last month they will launch a pan-African airline group in 2024 as part of its strategic partnership to boost growth. The two airlines are currently implementing phase two of the partnership framework, which will lead to forming the new group.

Source: The North Africa Post

RwandAir continues to expand its global reach and has spread its wings further by signing a codeshare agreement with Turkish Airlines. The new partnership, inked on April 11, will offer RwandAir customers more travel choices, convenience, and connectivity both from Kigali International (KGL) and Istanbul International Airport (IST). The codeshare comes at a time when the Kigali-based carrier is expanding its operations and establishing itself in the long-haul market.

Access to an extensive network

Turkish Airlines is one of the world’s leading carriers with the most extensive route network. The airline operates flights to over 300 destinations worldwide and over 50 in Africa, connecting them with the rest of the world. In April and May 2023, Turkey’s flag carrier will be operating seven flights a week to Kigali.

RwandAir customers traveling from Africa will have access to Turkish Airlines’ vast network across five continents. Similarly, passengers flying on Turkish Airlines will have access to RwandAir’s intra-Africa network to reach even more cities.

RwandAir is Africa’s fastest-growing airline, providing safe and reliable services in the air transportation industry. The new codeshare with Turkish Airlines is a significant opportunity for growth. RwandAir CEO Yvonne Makolo said,

“We are incredibly excited to have signed this new codeshare agreement with one the world’s largest and leading carriers, Turkish Airlines. This landmark move will not only allow our customers to access the 124 countries served by Turkish Airlines, but will improve connections for inbound travelers to Africa via our extensive continental network.”

Turkish Airlines is recovering well from the effects of the pandemic, as the latest statistics show. In March, the airline carried about 6.1 million passengers, a 27.5% increase compared to March 2022. In the first quarter, the airline lifted about 17.1 million passengers, a significant increase from the same period last year.

Africa and the global market

Many international airlines continue to add destinations in Africa and increase frequencies on current routes. Africa is leading in the recovery from the pandemic, which airlines can leverage to increase their services to and from the continent.

Consolidation and partnerships like the codeshare between RwandAir and Turkish Airlines give global travelers better access to the African market. This will boost trade, tourism, and economic activity and help unlock the continent’s great potential.

Rwanda’s flag carrier also has strategic partnerships with Qatar and British Airways. It continues to explore commercial opportunities to strengthen its global presence and maintain its relationship with the African customer base. Yvonne Makolo added that,

“RwandAir is always exploring new commercial opportunities to expand its reach into markets which can deliver financial return and benefit our growing customer base.”

The airline aims to link Rwanda with the rest of the world while operating aircraft and other equipment maintained to the highest international standard. To expand its network and serve its new destinations, the airline recently took delivery of a third Airbus A330. The aircraft has been deployed on its international routes.

Source: Simple Flying

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to power Kenya Airways (KQ) to recovery. Widespread use of technology is beginning to influence how consumers are treated and make organisations understand their needs.

This is because AI-powered chatbots provide personalised and immediate assistance to every client. As a result, airlines become more productive.

AI evaluates travellers’ data and provides personalised travel experiences in the airline sector. Because of this new area that AI has brought into the business, KQ can be on track to recovery.

And as the economy is trying to recover from the effects of the pandemic, the aviation industry must learn how to manage consumer and employee-labour relationships.

A healthy work environment fosters a culture of creativity and excellence.

A look at the industry reports in 2022, the airline moved 65,000 tonnes of cargo, increasing tonnage by 3.5 percent.

In addition, by the end of 2022, 10.3 billion Available Seat Kilometers (ASKs) were deployed, up 75 percent from the 5.9 billion reported over the same period in 2021.

Because of this, passenger load factors in 2022 were just 3.9 percentage points lower than those attained in 2019 before the pandemic.

In 2022, KQ’s revenue increased by 66 percent to Sh117 billion. In addition, passenger numbers were up 68 percent to 3.7 million compared to 2021. All these indicators show that KQ is on a recovery path.

Despite all these stellar performances given the challenges that affected the industry, there are clear signs that it has some work to do to lower operating costs that went up by 93 percent due to escalating fuel costs, forex losses, volatility of the shilling and the financial restructuring.

Further, a strategy to leverage technology for more remarkable productivity improvement is imperative. AI, for example, will assist in regaining consumer confidence, reducing costs, and improving operational efficiency.

It is also time to review its European strategy if the current partnerships restrict its expansion to directly compete with other African carriers.

A flexible partnership strategy with other airlines, travel companies, and airports is more desirable to expand its customer base, improve efficiency, and cut costs.

It is not clear why the airline’s Europe presence is limited to a few cities compared to its African rivals such as Ethiopian Airlines.

Like other airlines globally, KQ should invest in new technologies to improve safety, efficiency, and customer experience.

For example, biometric facial recognition and fingerprint scanning technologies streamline check-in and boarding processes.

Further, it will help reduce wait times and enhance security. In addition, intensify the use of self-service kiosks, mobile apps and a robust online booking platform.

Even though there are similar challenges facing the entire airline industry, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the sector expects a return to profitability next year as airlines continue to reduce losses stemming from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Some of the airline’s challenges that are being looked into are the restructuring of its financial arrangements, which requires broader support from the government.

For instance, the government of the United States gave the aviation sector $50 billion in grants and loans in March 2020 through the Coronavirus Assistance, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

Similar policies have also been adopted by other nations, such as offering airlines grants or low-interest loans to aid them with operational costs and staff retention.

Governments have yet to take steps to boost the aviation sector more generally, such as lowering taxes and fees for airlines and investing in airport facilities to promote the resumption of air travel.

With the slow recovery of air travel demand, these actions are meant to assist airlines in recovering from the pandemic and resuming sustainable operations.

We learn from others. Emirates Airlines, for example, has played a significant role in promoting Dubai as a popular tourism destination.

In addition, the airline’s marketing initiatives have contributed to developing a favourable perception of the UAE as a modern, cosmopolitan nation.

The sight of KQ in foreign airports evokes nostalgia and a sense of pride in many Kenyans. In it lies an excellent opportunity to leverage its branding potential to revive our tourism sector.

The country stands to benefit from KQ’s success as it contributes to the branding of Kenya. It symbolises Kenya’s identity and culture, and we must ensure its recovery.

Investment in technology precipitates greater profitability in the days to come.

Source: Business Daily