MORE FIFTH FREEDOM RIGHTS ON THE WAY TO RESTORE LOST CONNECTIVITY
(Posted 03rd November 2014)
Uganda’s Civil Aviation Authority, at a very low public opinion ranking after finishing off Air Uganda and Asante Aviation and putting the entire aviation industry in Uganda at the brink of ruin, is reportedly, albeit very slowly, discussing additional fifth freedom rights with airlines in the region to restore the lost connectivity which existed before the exit of quasi national airline Air Uganda.
After handing fifth freedom rights from Entebbe to South Sudan to Ethiopian, not an EAC member country airline, and to RwandAir, the national airline of EAC – and Coalition of the Willing – member Rwanda already a few weeks ago, are additional routes now under consideration.
FlyDubai was handed fifth freedom rights to fly three times a week from Entebbe to Bujumbura, but this again is not an airline resident in East Africa and was swiftly interpreted as an act of mere activism if not desperation to at least have some flights from Uganda to Burundi, a route which Air Uganda previously also served. However, daily flight options exist via RwandAir which connects through their Kigali hub on a daily basis as one can route with Kenya Airways via Nairobi, also on a daily basis
Regular travelers to Nairobi are also still complaining that they were robbed of options when Air Uganda’s AOC was pulled in June and with pressure on the hapless regulators still heavy, has a source close to the UCAA confirmed that talks are about to be concluded to have a regional airline fly twice a day from Entebbe to Nairobi under fifth freedom rights.
The same appears to be happening for the Dar es Salaam route, which Air Uganda served twice a day and where Tanzania’s Fastjet now operates just four times a week after an initial two flights when launching a few weeks ago. Regular travelers have, like for destination Nairobi, continued to demand at least one daily flight between Entebbe and Dar es Salaam and it should be seen within the space of a week or two if this will indeed happen.
For breaking and regular aviation news from Eastern Africa, look no further but this space.
One Response
A storm seems to be building over the TCAA capability to monitor the quality of Tanzanian AOC holders performance?
On the surface all looks good but documented complaints over breach of Civil Aviation Regulations and a toxic culture in some companies are being subdued by the TCAA.