Emirates announces second A380 frequency to Sydney from June
EMIRATES ANNOUNCES SECOND DAILY A380 FREQUENCY TO SYDNEY A regular source from the Kampala office of Emirates, Dubai’s award winning airline, has confirmed that from 01st of June onwards they will operate a second daily Airbus A380 nonstop flight between Dubai and Sydney. The move will add nearly 1.900 extra seats per week on the […]
South Sudan launches Civil Aviation Authority
SOUTH SUDAN ESTABLISHES INDEPENDENT CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has earlier this week issued a decree, establishing the country’s Civil Aviation Authority while at the same time appointing General Agasio Akol as the first chairman of the board, overseeing the new aviation body alongside 6 other members. SSCAA will now seek formal […]
Serengeti benefits from global recognition
SERENGETI’S NEW SEVEN NATURAL WONDERS OF THE WORLD STATUS DRAWS IN VISITORS The Serengeti National Park, according to figures released by TANAPA, the Tanzania National Park Authority, has reached record numbers, going by the media statement given from Mr. Pascal Shelutete earlier this week, exceeding 17.000 last month, the highest number ever recorded entering the […]
FastJet attempts to dispel rumours through press conference
FASTJET RESPONDS TO DEBT AND OTHER ALLEGATIONS Information was received from a source in Dar es Salaam who attended a press conference yesterday called by FastJet at short notice. Airline executives refuted claims that they were not paying their dues to TCAA or TRA but tried to explain that, while they acquired Fly540 Tanzania last […]
Inshoza Ballet leaves mark on FESPAD with a blend of old and new
INSHOZA BALLET TAKES AUDIENCE BY STORM When the FESPAD, the Pan African Dance Festival, moved to the Northern Province headquarter town of Huye, expectations were to see much of similarities vis a vis previous days. A stop enroute to the festival venue at the National Museum, which is based together with the Institute of National […]
Mauritius and Maldives sign aviation agreement
MAURITIUS AND MALDIVES SIGN NEW AIR ACCORD The two Indian Ocean island states have earlier this week signed a new bilateral air services agreement, commonly referred to as BASA, allowing the national airlines of the two countries to commence up to 7 flights per week between Port Louis and Male at a later time. The […]
FESPAD 2013 goes upcountry
TAKE A BREAK – DANCE IS THE MOTTO OF FESPAD 2013 AS IT MOVES TO THE COUNTRYSIDE ‘When we hosted FESPAD before, all activities were concentrated in Kigali. This time we wanted to have the entire country have a chance to participate. The national competition is now on and we will have a winner when […]
Precision Air announced double digit passenger growth
PRECISION AIR SHRUGS OFF FASTJET ARRIVAL WITH DOUBLE DIGIT GROWTH The showmanship of FastJet mouthpieces notwithstanding has Precision Air just announced a 13 percent growth in passenger numbers for the period between April 2012 and end January 2013, with a record uplift of 750.762 passengers compared to the same period in the previous year with […]
Dr. Anthony King, renowned Kenyan conservationist, dies in Mt. Kenya plane crash
KENYA CONSERVATION FRATERNITY MOURNS DR. ANTHONY KING Dr. Anthony King, former CEO of the Laikipia Wildlife Forum and more recently manager of the Ngolale Ranch in Rumuruti, died yesterday afternoon when his plane crashed on Mt. Kenya after taking off from the Nanyuki airfield earlier on. The light aircraft, an Aeroprakt A22 Foxbat, was registered […]
FESPAD 2013 finally launches
FESPAD FINALLY LAUNCHES WITH AN EYE CANDY PERFORMANCE OF DANCES The uncertainties of the weather removed, by staging the second attempt to launch FESPAD 2013 indoors at the Petit Stade of the Amahoro National Stadium in Kigali, the show finally got on the road, opened by the Rwandan Minister for Culture in the presence of […]
Pre-election blues for Kenya tourism prompts some harsh but true words
TOURISM BUSINESSES FACE PRE-ELECTION BLUES AS MORE BLAME IS HEAPED ON MWAZO ‘Finally his time in tourism is coming to an end. Too much of what he did was embroiled in controversy and the things which needed doing were not done. I cannot wait for a new government to take over and appoint someone capable […]
Washout for opening ceremony of FESPAD causes rescheduling
WHEN FESPAD TURNED INTO A WETPAD The combined opinion yesterday at the Amahoro National Stadium was that ‘Someone Somewhere’ was responsible for the complete washout, in fact blowout of the opening ceremony as it was just about to start, when a hailstorm of biblical proportions unloaded its icy cargo and unleashed nature’s full wrath on […]
Weekly roundup of news from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean region, Fourth edition February 2013
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 You can get your daily breaking news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome, join me on www.facebook.com/WolfgangHThome where the articles also ‘cross load’ or […]
Rwanda sticks to investment plans to build a better future
RWANDA INVESTS IN FUTURE INSPITE OF DONOR STAMPEDE Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was outspoken as usual when he harshly criticized the current wave of opportunistic financial sanctions as withdrawal of committed and confirmed aid packages to Rwanda for education, health and social services hit the country’s budgeting and is currently causing some serious […]
FESPAD goes underway in Rwanda’s capital Kigali
FESPAD – THE PAN AFRICAN DANCE FESTIVAL – OPENS IN KIGALI Another week long spectacle of dance and art, performed by participants from over 40 African countries, is going underway today when President Paul Kagame opens FESPAD, the Pan African dance, song and heritage event at the Amahoro National Stadium in Kigali before an expected […]
Kenya Airways set to return to B767-300 services to Delhi in June
KENYA AIRWAYS SET TO UP CAPACITY TO DEHLI AGAIN FROM JUNE Not long after reducing capacity on the Nairobi to Dehli route by the introduction of a B737-700 aircraft instead of the initially operated B767-300 aircraft, has Kenya Airways now indicated that from the 11th June onwards they will revert to the B767-300 operation, at […]
UWA mourns loss of a staff after Ishasha shooting incident
UWA MOURNS THE KILLING OF ONE OF THEIR STAFF BY ALLEGED CONGOLESE INTRUDERS The Uganda Wildlife Authority, and the country’s conservation and tourism fraternity, mourn the loss of one Angel Kobusheshe in the Ishasha or Southern Sector of the Queen Elizabeth National Park, which borders to the Congo DR were sporadic fighting is still going […]
Kenyan elections prompt ‘stocking up’ in Uganda and beyond
STOCKING UP FUEL AND COMMODITIES AHEAD OF KENYA ELECTIONS CAUSES SHORTAGES As the elections in Kenya are drawing nearer are Ugandans, but also the people of other hinterland countries like in South Sudan, Eastern Congo, Rwanda and Burundi stocking up on essential commodities, including fuel, driving prices for petrol and diesel further up and threatening […]
Kenya Airways and Etihad sign extensive code share and partnership deal
KENYA AIRWAYS ANNOUNCES CODESHARE DEAL WITH ETIHAD Following the progressive partnership between Abu Dhabi’s national airline Etihad and European mega carrier KLM / Air France does it come as no particular surprise, other than the timing, that Etihad has now signed an extensive codeshare deal with Kenya Airways, a SkyTeam partner in which KLM holds […]
KLM announces daily flights to Entebbe
KLM ANNOUNCES DAILY FLIGHTS BETWEEN ENTEBBE AND AMSTERDAM In breaking news has KLM in Kampala just announced that they will move to daily flights on the Entebbe – Amsterdam route, effective 05th of April this year. The news come not long after British Airways announced the withdrawal of their flights to Dar es Salaam, a […]
Africa Hotel Investment Forum returns to the Nairobi InterContinental Hotel in September
AFRICA HOTEL INVESTMENT FORUM RETURNS TO THE NAIROBI INTERCONTINENTAL September 25 and 26 were given to this correspondent from a hospitality source at the InterContinental Hotel in Nairobi, when the hugely successful Africa Hotel Investment Forum will return for the second year running to Kenya’s capital Nairobi, bringing the global hospitality giants together with smaller […]
KTDC to complete sale of InterConti, Hilton and Mt. Lodge shares by June
KENYA’S SALE OF THREE HOTEL INTERESTS TO BE CONCLUDED BY JUNE A regular source close to the Kenya Tourism Development Corporation in Nairobi has confirmed that the sale of the government’s shares in the Hotel InterContinental Nairobi, the Hilton Nairobi and the Mountain Lodge will be concluded by June this year. The co-shareholders in all […]
Air Tanzania at the brink of losing their head office building
AIR TANZANIA RISKS TO LOSE HEAD OFFICE OVER DEBT CLAIMS Information has come to light that the head office building of Air Tanzania is currently being assessed as to its value following an order by the Tanzania High Court over an outstanding debt of over 1 billion Tanzania Shillings, which the airline has failed to […]
Tanzanian government attempts to hoodwink media into giving ‘greenwashed’ information about Uranium mining
TANZANIA GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS PANIC OVER URANIUM MINING FEARS AND RUMOURS Fear appears to be spreading through the establishment in Dar es Salaam over the level of opposition to Uranium mining and its potentially toxic and perhaps even fatal side effects, prompting a mini offensive through a workshop last week for media representatives, meant to ‘clear […]
Of threats and the fools who make them
There are occasions when what I write and report about touches some raw nerves, I step on toes and ruffle feathers.As a result I have in the past gotten threats, some quite explicit and leaving no doubt what the respective individuals would do should they get their hands on me. Eritrean regime sycophants not happy […]
Second shooting of an Italian in Malindi in two weeks rocks Italian expatriate community
SECOND ARMED ATTACK ON ITALIAN TOURISTS RAISE ALARM LEVELS IN MALINDI Two armed attacks, using guns and machetes, on the Italian holiday community in Malindi, have raised the alarm of targeted violence against this Indian Ocean municipality’s most numerous visitors. The Italian Foreign Ministry issued a statement expressing their concern over the safety of their […]
Guest post by the Mombasa and Coast Tourism Association
South Coast Hotels Put On Notice by NEMA Mombasa and Coast Tourist Association has learnt that NEMA has put hotels at the South Coast on notice as majority of them operate without proper waste management facilities and end up polluting the environment through effluent discharge. Further, NEMA says it has collected evidence against the hotels […]
Desvaux sacking may lead to political fallout as PMSD executive meets today
DESVAUX SACKING MAY PROMPT POLITICAL FALLOUT The sacking of MTPA Chairman Robert Desvaux, instead of the more widely expected cleaning house starting with the CEO Karl Mootoosamy, appears to now make ripples across the PMSD party of Deputy Prime Minister Duval, since Desvaux is by many thought to be literally the right hand man of […]
Fly Dubai makes Juba its next Africa destination
FLY DUBAI SET FOR APRIL INAUGURAL TO JUBA Confirmation was received yesterday afternoon from a regular aviation source in Juba / South Sudan, that Fly Dubai, the leading LCC of the United Arab Emirates, will commence flights from 21st April this year. Initially the airline, using an exclusive fleet of B737-800 NG aircraft, will fly […]
Kenya Airways seeks extension of KLM partnership deal from competition authority in Nairobi
KENYA AIRWAYS APPLIES FOR EXTENDED IMMUNITY OVER KLM / AIR FRANCE DEAL Information was received from Nairobi that Kenya Airways has applied to the country’s competition authority for extended exemption of their partnership deals with KLM / Air France, to prevent competitors from filing complaints about elements of their joint venture agreements. The two airlines […]
