Etihad coming to Kenya soon – set to get new Midfield Terminal at home base
ABU DHABI AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT PLANS SUPPORT ETIHAD EXPANSION (Impression of the new Midfield Terminal, courtesy of Abu Dhabi Airport Company) Etihad, Abu Dhabis national airline, will be commencing flights to Nairobi in April, as was earlier on reported here. Now news have emerged through aviation sources in the Gulf region, that Abu Dhabis government has […]
Rwanda aviation news – New automated immigration control booths in test phase at Kanombe International
RWANDA TAKES THE LEAD AGAIN A source from Kigalis international airport has confirmed information obtained a few days ago, that the Department of Immigration of Rwanda was introducing two automated gates at Kanombe International Airport, aimed to test their suitability for fast track processing of arriving passengers. It is understood that these new unmanned gates […]
Zanzibar news update – MV Skagit stopped from sailing to Pemba by ZAM over safety concerns
ZANZIBAR MARINE AUTHORITY STOPS FAULTY SHIP FROM SAILING FOR PEMBA It appears that the lessons learned from the disaster of the sinking of the MV Spice Islander last year were learned well when the Zanzibar Marine Authority prevented a vessel, set to sail to Pemba, from leaving port, after the ships safety was called in […]
Kenya conservation news – Is Lamu the next battle ground between conservationists and developers?
LAPSSET LAUNCH SET FOR MARCH SUBJECT TO POTENTIAL COURT INJUNCTION The tripartite launch of LAPSSET, also known as the Lamu Port Southern Sudan Ethiopia project, has been announced for March 02nd, when President Kibaki will in the presence of Southern Sudans President Salva Kiir and Ethiopias Prime Minister Menes Zenawi officially launch the project in […]
Mauritius aviation news – Sydney and Melbourne axing prompts negative reaction in Australia
AIR MAURITIUS CHOPS SYDNEY AND MELBOURNE Reactions came pouring in swift and harsh when news were announced that Air Mauritius had decided to chop two of their three Australian destinations, concentrating on Perth only, and leaving Sydney to Air Austral operating via La Reunion while the significant Melbourne market was abandoned altogether. The news came […]
Seychelles aviation news – Air Seychelles revival result of presidential intervention
PRESIDENTIAL INTERVENTION SAVED AIR SEYCHELLES Information is beginning to filter into the public domain, of how the personal intervention by President James Michel brought Abu Dhabis Etihad into the frame, following discussions between the two governments in regard of part privatizing Air Seychelles. Upon agreement at the level of the two heads of state, Etihad […]
Air Seychelles to launch Abu Dhabi flights on March 12th
AIR SEYCHELLES TO LAUNCH CODESHARED FLIGHTS TO ABU DHABI It has now been confirmed that Air Seychelles will launch nonstop flights, twice a week, between Mahe and Abu Dhabi as of 12th March, alongside the present 4 frequencies by Etihad, Abu Dhabis national airline, which now owns 40 percent of its shares. The airline will […]
Seychelles tourism news – Hungarian charter opens new market
7 DEGREES SOUTH RECEIVES HUNGARIAN CHARTER FLIGHT It was learned from a regular source on the island of Mahe that 7 Degrees South, one of the Seychelles leading DMCs has received over 100 tourist visitors off a chartered B737-800 from Hungary, which is part of a series of such flights between Budapest and Mombasa / […]
African aviation news – ET, KQ and PW scoops African Aviation News awards
AFRICAN AVIATION AWARDS CROWN ET, KQ AND PW Following the audit of over 20.000 votes by readers of African Aviation News has Ethiopian Airlines once again been crowned African Airlines of the year 2011/12 in an award ceremony earlier in the week. The prestigious award has underscored ETs efforts to stay at the leading edge […]
Ethiopian aviation news – ET signs up for 5 more Bombardier Q400 NextGen
ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES SIGNS UP FOR 5 MORE BOMBARDIER Q400 NEXTGEN Earlier speculation was confirmed overnight when Ethiopian Airlines was named by Bombardier as the customer for a further 5 orders of the state of the art turboprop aircraft of Q400 NextGen make. Two of the planes will be used by Ethiopian directly while three of […]
Mauritius aviation news – Air Mauritius expected to axe up to 8 destinations under cost cutting initative
AIR MAURITIUS TO AXE UP TO 8 ROUTES Further information received from Port Louis now speaks of a consulting firm, hired by the top management of Air Mauritius, to have recommended the cutting of up to 8 routes not bringing in the revenues expected of them. The same source also suggested that the airline may […]
Mauritius aviation breaking news – Air Mauritius’ financial situation worsens considerably
AIR MAURITIUS FINANCIAL OUTLOOK WORSENS Alarm bells are ringing at the Air Mauritius head quarters in Port Louis when the latest losses became public knowledge yesterday, showing a 28 million US Dollars loss for the three quarters of their business year by end December 2011. It is understood from a regular source from Mauritius that […]
Kenya tourism news – Lamu ready to host Maulid Festival
MAULID FESTIVAL IN LAMU PROMISES TOURISM REVIVAL Tomorrow will the annual Maulid Festival in Lamu go underway and up to 80.000 visitors are expected to descend on the archipelago in coming weeks, to celebrate the birth month of the Prophet Mohamed as done every year. The Festival is co-organised by the National Museums of Kenya […]
Kenya tourism news – 98 billion tourism revenues best ever
KENYA TOURISM MISSES 100 BILLION TARGET BY A WHISKER With final figures now available from the Ministry of Tourism in Nairobi for the year 2011, it has become evident that the 98 billion Kenya Shillings tourism revenues missed their initial target by just 2 billion, a remarkable achievement considering the circumstances the industry was faced […]
Seychelles aviation news – Blue Panorama completes maiden flight to Mahe
BLUE PANORAMA MAKES MAIDEN FLIGHT TO SEYCHELLES Italys Blue Panorama has yesterday landed for the first time in the Seychelles on a currently weekly flight from Milan and Rome to Mahe, offering Italian travelers once again a direct or nonstop connection from Italy following the withdrawal of Air Seychelles services a month ago. The Who […]
Seychelles breaking news – Carnival Festival programme released
CARNIVAL PROGRAMME PUBLISHED 2 WEEKS TO GO TO #SEYCHELLESCARNIVAL2012 The Seychelles Tourism Board has overnight released the much expected official programme for the 2012 edition of the Carnaval de Carnivals, co-hosted this year jointly with fellow Vanilla Island member La Reunion, and as one can see, bigger, better and more exciting than ever before. The […]
Kenya Airways B737-700 now flies in Sky Team livery
KENYA AIRWAYS B737-700 IN SKY TEAM LIVERY Kenya Airways has completed painting one of their B737-700 aircraft in Sky Team livery and the aircraft has resumed flying and carrying out ambassadorial duties across the KQ network. The Pride of Africa is the only Sky Team member the alliance has in Africa and therefore of crucial […]
Rwanda aviation news – Reflections by a regular reader
AIR TRAFFIC GROWTH IN RWANDA REFLECTIONS BY A REGULAR READER Rwanda set to experience high growth in air travel With major global carriers eyeing Kigali International Airport, is the existence of the national carrier threatened? The government of Rwanda has redoubled its efforts towards making tourism and foreign direct investments priority for the economic development […]
Seychelles breaking news – All swimming restrictions on Praslin beaches lifted with immediate effect
SEYCHELLES GOVERNMENT RE-OPENS ALL BEACHES Information was just received from the Seychelles Tourism Board that all hitherto closed beaches on the island of Praslin and others have been re-opened with immediate effect, following extensive safety precautions taken by government to ensure the safety of swimmers. The statement reads as follows: THE SAFETY LABEL FOR SEYCHELLES […]
Weekly roundup of news from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, Second edition February 2012
AVIATION, TOURISM AND CONSERVATION NEWS from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands. A weekly roundup of breaking news, reports, travel stories and opinions by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang H. Thome Get daily breaking news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome, join me on Facebook where the articles also cross load and are available to […]
Congo aviation news – Bukavu crash claims life of top presidential advisor, injures Congolese finance minister
ANOTHER PLANE CRASH CLAIMS LIFE OF PRESIDENTIAL ADVISOR Information has been received from Eastern Congo, that a plane crash in Bukavu has claimed the life of top presidential advisor Augustine Katumba Mwanke, while seriously injuring the Congolese Finance Minister, the Governor of South Kivu Province and other senior officials of the regime in Kinshasa. The […]
Southern Sudan news – Nimule elephants kill at least 3 villagers
NIMULE ELEPHANTS KILL VILLAGERS Sad news arrived from Juba / Southern Sudan yesterday when it became known that rogue elephants straying outside the Nimule National Park had reportedly killed at least 3 people including a pregnant woman. Complaints voiced in Juba to the Directorate for Wildlife were reportedly also not meeting with any significant action, […]
Tanzania conservation news – Interview in The Guardian about the Stiegler’s Gorge hydro power project
INTERVIEW ON STIEGLERS GORGE POWER PROJECT WITH LEADING OFFICIAL As repeated mention was given in past months about the planned hydro electric power plant at the Stieglers Gorge / Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania, a recent interview by Michael Haonga with the Director General of the Rufiji Basin Development Authority Aloyce Masanja was recently published […]
Mauritius news – Spared by cyclone the island gets much needed rains
RAINS CONTINUE TO DRENCH MAURITIUS While spared the onslaught of a recent cyclone, which passed Mauritius well off shore, the island was nevertheless at the receiving end of heavy rains. A regular source however saw the positive side of this weather as in his words at least our water reservoirs can start to fill up […]
Uganda aviation news – U7 goes daily to Dar es Salaam now
AIR UGANDA UPS DAR FLIGHTS TO DAILY Ugandas quasi national airline U7 has announced that they will move from presently 6 departures per week between Entebbe to Dar es Salaam to now daily flights with immediate effect, adding Sunday flights which previously were not featuring on the schedule. The airline now serves Nairobi 3 times […]
Kenya aviation news – Gulf Air to remain on Nairobi route, sheds Athens and Damascus
GULF AIR TO CLOSE MORE ROUTES Gulf Air has announced that following the closure of their routes to Entebbe and Geneva two weeks ago, a further four routes will be shelved from March onwards. Affected are Athens and Damascus, both in the bad news over political troubles, but also Milan and Kuala Lumpur which have […]
Seychelles ‘Carnival International de Victoria’ update
CARNIVAL INTERNATIONAL DE VICTORIA ATTRACTS AT LEAST 26 FOREIGN GROUPS Information available from Victoria now indicates that at least 26 foreign carnival groups have confirmed their participation in the Carnvaval de Carnivals in the Seychelles capital Victoria, with key carnival nations like Brazil and Germany represented with floats and troupes, besides the famous Notting Hill […]
Mauritius hospitality news – New ‘essentials only’ business hotel to open at Mall of Mauritius
NEW BUSINESS HOTEL SET TO OPEN ON MARCH 12TH No room service, no pool, no in-house restaurant and NO SURPRISES AT CHECK OUT was the description given by a source in Port Louis when describing a new, mall based business hotel, the Voila Bagatelle` which is set to open in a months time. While following […]
Kenya tourism news – David Stogdale appointed to the board of KTB
DAVID STOGDALE APPOINTED DIRECTOR OF THE KENYA TOURIST BOARD Effective January 19th did the Minister of Tourism Najib Balala appoint one of Kenyas hospitality grandmasters, David Stogdale, to the board of director of KTB it was learned over the weekend. Looking back at a long and distinguished career in key positions of Kenyas hospitality industry […]
Kenya conservation breaking news – Southern Bypass routing prompts immediate opposition by conservationists
NAIROBI NATIONAL PARK HOW LONG WILL THE DEFENCES HOLD Sections of Kenya conservation fraternity have described plans to carve out over 150 acres from the Nairobi National Park the beginning of the end fearing that once the precedent has been set, the flood gates will open even more in the future. The next thing will […]
