KORONGO AIRLINES SET TO FLY FROM APRIL 16TH
As reported here a few months ago in a breaking news announcement, Brussels Airlines Congolese aviation offspring Korongo Airlines has now finally given a date when flights will officially commence. After formally launching their offices last week the airline will be operating out of Lubumbashi. Korongo Airlines subsequently has just announced that flights between FBM (Lubumbashi) to Kinshasa will launch on April 16th with Johannesburg following hot on the heels on April 19th.
As of 01st of May passengers in both directions will be able to check through baggage to and from Brussels, as the flights are timed to land and depart from Kinshasa according to the daily flight arrivals of SN.
The airline has also announced that they will soon afterward launch Kolwezi (KWZ) and Mbuji Maji (MJM) using their present BAe 146 aircraft.
In a novel way of injecting confidence in Congolese aviation has the new airline been given permission to use Belgium registered aircraft under a wet lease, which includes not just well trained crews under EASA standards but also subscribes to EASA maintenance standards and EASA aviation safety oversight for continuous airworthiness, something many locally registered airlines in the Congo DR in the past lacked with disastrous consequences.
The airline has put up a Lubumbashi based maintenance facility which, needless to say, is also operated under the strict EASA standards and supported by the Congolese civil aviation authorities.
Important for travel agents is that they can use the Brussels Airlines plates on code 082 to ticket passengers on ZC to all destinations. Fares will be displayed in both Amadeus and Galileo systems, again using code 082.
Happy landings when the inaugural flight takes to the skies over Congo and best of success to this remarkable partnership between Brussels Airlines, Group Forrest International and local Congolese investors.
