MORE FLIGHTS NOW AND COME 2016 MORE DESTINATIONS TOO
(Posted 19th December 2015)
The Burundi crisis brought Ugandan fans of ‘Savoir Vivre’ in the air an unexpected windfall, when Brussels Airlines pulled one of their two weekly frequencies from Bujumbura and gifted Uganda a fourth flight in combination with Kigali. Besides the three nonstop services between Brussels and Entebbe has the fourth flight already been taken up and seat sales have reportedly soared ahead of the festive season.
Meanwhile has Brussels Airlines also announced that come summer 2016 they will widen their international network with the addition of Toronto / Canada. An additional two Airbus A330-200’s have been lined up to boost the fleet and to permit the resumption of Washington DC flights six times a week next summer and the new Toronto flights five times a week.
As of spring next year will Brussels Airlines add a ninth Airbus A330-200 to its fleet. This long-range aircraft allows to connect Brussels Airport and Toronto 5 times a week starting from April, to fill the void of the departure of Jet Airways from the route. Sales of the Toronto flights start next week already just ahead of the Christmas holidays.
At the same time does Brussels Airlines continue to focus on African growth. In the spring of 2016 extra flights to Kigali (Rwanda) and Entebbe (Uganda) will be added to the schedule, bringing the flight frequencies to 6 and 4 flights a week respectively. Flights between Kigali and Brussels are codeshared with Rwanda’s national airline RwandAir.
In the coming 12 to 15 months will then a tenth A330-200 join the fleet to expand the flights to and from Africa. Brussels Airlines is currently, according to reliably information received, analyzing two additional routes, namely Lagos and Libreville. More information will be made available in due course when additional details have been ascertained from sources at the airline.
The flights to Toronto were previously operated by India’s Jet Airways on which Brussels Airlines code-shared but the withdrawal from the route by Jet has paved the way for SN to operate the service under their own flag.
Bernard Gustin, CEO of Brussels Airlines, commented on the development when he said: ‘This important expansion plan is a significant investment both financially and in terms of employment. We create a larger offer for our growing number of passengers as well as for our cargo clients. At the same time, we take our role as a growth engine for the airport and the Belgian economy to heart’.
Brussels Airlines is the only airline flying nonstop and directly out of East Africa’s Entebbe, Kigali and Bujumbura airports to the European capital, though no longer from Nairobi, where as a result of a route swap with Germany’s Lufthansa SN withdrew to take over flights to Accra.
