LACK OF AUDITED ACCOUNTS PUTS AIR TANZANIA SURVIVAL IN PERIL
(Posted 08th January 2016)
‘If this new government needs still more reasons to sack the ATCL bosses and shut this so called airline down, then I honestly don’t know. It took a lot less suspicion to sort out the boards and bosses at Tanzania Revenue, Tanzania Ports and just look how the new tourism minister sacked away those forest officials’ ranted a regular Dar es Salaam based aviation source yesterday evening. The accompanying news were surely not good for Air Tanzania, as allegations emerged in public that the airline has not produced audited accounts for eight years now, which if true would amount to criminal neglect on the side of the management and violation of several statues under which state corporations operate.
The Magufuli government has so far shown no mercy on corruption and a significant number of bureaucrats and officials have already been removed from their posts and charged them in courts. Magufuli early in his term of office also named Air Tanzania as one of the problem areas, alongside the state electricity corporation and the railways and these latest revelations are bound to increase pressure on government to finally act decisively and shut the moribund airline down.
Multiple bailouts in recent years, with apparently no financial accountability and transparency at all, did go to waste as the airline has failed to either attract a strategic investor or make good of their full mouthed statements that they were to acquire more aircraft.
Their single turboprop Bombardier Q300 is once again under heavy maintenance, having previously suffered a landing accident in April 2012, as reported immediately here at the time. While several sources back then told this correspondent that the aircraft was severely damaged did Air Tanzania nevertheless embark on a costly repair of the aircraft. The other aircraft is a leased Bombardier CRJ200 leased from the Kenyan firm, the only aircraft presently operating. At one stage completely grounded when the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority pulled the airline’s AOC over discrepancies in aircraft records has Air Tanzania since then struggled with debts incurred by past managers, law suits which went after the remaining assets and a more or less permanent cash crisis due to lack of reliable operations.
Another aviation source then added ‘These financial bailouts have distorted the market. Precision Air has been making losses, Fastjet had huge obligations to clear from those 540 people when they took over and none of them are making any profits yet. They have to find their cash from either shareholders or banks and meanwhile does Air Tanzania shove their begging bowl into the face of government hoping for free money. On simply business terms they should be declaring bankruptcy. If government wants to invest in an airline, let them buy Precision Air shares or invest in Fastjet but no longer prop up a failed enterprise. Their managers are useless and just remember how many ended up in court over their dubious deals’.
In turn has Precision Air tightened their financial belts, rationalized their fleet [comprising ATR 42 and ATR72 after disposing of a B737-300) and now only serves one regional route, to Nairobi while all other flights are domestic services to Mtwara, Zanzibar, Kilimanjaro, Mwanza, Kigoma, Bukoba and Arusha out of their hub in Dar es Salaam.
Fastjet in turn is the only remaining Tanzanian airline operating to multiple African destinations, serving Johannesburg, Lilongwe, Harare, Lusaka and Entebbe while on Monday next week launching daily flights to Nairobi. Planned Comoros flights have reportedly been held up over one outstanding item of documentation.
On the domestic routes out of Dar es Salaam does the airline serve Kilimanjaro – four times a day, Mwanza – five times a day, Mbeya – twice a day and will add Zanzibar as of Tuesday next week with a daily flight, all operated by Airbus A319 aircraft. For regular and breaking aviation news look no further but this space.
One Response
They have had 38 years ( after the Collapse of East African airways) to learn how to run an airline and failed. They should shut down and pay off their enormous debt.