Fly 540 Africa

Category: News

  • Air Seychelles Partners with Car Trawler to Offer Guests Ground Transportation

    Air Seychelles, the national airline of the Republic of Seychelles, has formed a new partnership with CarTrawler, the world’s leading B2B travel technology platform, to provide guests with car hire and ground transportation options.

    CarTrawler’s technology will enable guests travelling with Air Seychelles or other airlines to book car rentals, hotel and airport transfers, and other modes of ground transport through airseychelles.com.

    The technology platform is used by more than 100 airlines around the world and is available in all markets where Air Seychelles operates, including Mahé and Praslin in Seychelles.

    Remco Althuis, Chief Executive Officer of Air Seychelles, said: “Our strategic partnership with CarTrawler will better meet the needs of our guests, who are increasingly looking for a one stop shop where they can book their flights, hotels and ground transport. Air Seychelles is looking to move into this direction and our partnership with CarTrawler is the first step in the process.”

    Aileen McCormack, Chief Commercial Officer of CarTrawler, said: “We are pleased that CarTrawler has partnered with Air Seychelles and will be providing industry leading travel technology solutions to the airline. We look forward to working with Air Seychelles on developing cutting edge innovations that will facilitate their customers’ journey and increase revenue streams for the airline.”

  • Ethiopian Airlines Becomes Africa’s first A350 full-flight simulator operator

    Ethiopian Airlines has announced that it has achieved yet another milestone, becoming the first A350 XWB Simulator Operator in Africa and among the few in the world. This machine is fitted with a full electrical motion system which delivers improved performance while providing energy savings and environmental benefits.

    Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, remarked: “The introduction of the A350 XWB Full-Flight Simulator is a continuation of our pioneering role in African aviation Technology. It is part of our Vision 2025 strategic roadmap to be fully self-sufficient in the provision of pilot training in all the aircraft type we operate. It complements the other full-flight simulators we are already operating such as the B787, B-777, B737, B757, B767 and Q400.

    “All in all, we have invested over $125 million in the last seven years to expand and upgrade all the facets of our training capabilities. These investments are meant to bridge the aviation skill gap in Africa and to avail well trained and qualified aviation professionals in the continent. Education is the biggest Equalizer of our time and our aim is to make Africa self-sufficient in aviation professionals ”

    The Pilot Training School of the airline has trained pilots from over 52 countries in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe, for close to 50 years.

    With its over six decades of existence, the training division of the airline, Ethiopian Aviation Academy, ICAO designated center of excellence, is a world class Aviation Training Center equipped with state-of- the-art and best in class training equipment and technology offering full range of Aviation Training Programs.
    Taking delivery of Africa’s first Airbus A350 XWB in 2016, Ethiopian currently operates 7 A350 XWBs with 17 on order.

  • Maputo International Airport Gets Exclusive Lounge

    First National Bank Mozambique (FNB) and National Aviation Services (NAS), the fastest growing aviation services provider in the emerging markets, recently inaugurated an exclusive, contemporary lounge at the International terminal of the Maputo International Airport. The FNB Lounge by Pearl Assist offers a modern, luxurious space providing guest with a comfortable environment to relax and unwind, have a meal or catch up on work before departing on their onward journey.

    The FNB Lounge by Pearl Assist, was officially inaugurated by General João Martins de Abreu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Institute for Civil Aviation of Mozambique, Emanuel Chavez, Chairman of Aeroportos de Moçambique (ADM) (www.Aeroportos.co.mz), Paulo Pereira, Deputy Director General of FNB Mozambique and David Henderson, Group Chief Commercial Officer, NAS.

    Operated by NAS Pearl Assist, the FNB lounge is located on the first floor of the Maputo International Airport departures terminal and caters to Platinum and Black Card Limited customers of FNB and First Rand. Card holders can access the lounge by presenting a valid FNB or First Rand credit or debit card and international boarding pass.

    The 250 square meter FNB lounge designed by NAS, incorporates world class design and state of the art entertainment facilities for the comfort of all guests. The lounge can seat 55 guests at full capacity. With a range of hot and cold food and drink options, free Wi-Fi, a business centre, a selection of reading material, shower facilities as well as a separate entertainment area for kids, the FNB Lounge is designed to be the ultimate in hospitality.

    NAS currently operates 31 lounges across Africa, the Middle East and Asia, at major airports in countries like Kuwait, UAE, Egypt, Morocco and Rwanda.

    Henderson said, “We are pleased to be partnering with FNB to open the first of its kind, contemporary lounge at Maputo International Airport. As we see an increase in foreign investments into the country, it is increasingly important to offer world class facilities to local as well as international travellers. With NAS’s expertise in lounge management, investment into resources and handpicked service teams, we are sure to offer FNB customers, as well as other guests the best in terms of comfort and luxury.”

    Pereira assured that his institution is committed to surpassing the expectations of the industry while adapting continuously.

    According to Pereira, lounge users will be assigned dedicated managers for assistance and will also receive individual cards with a custom chip and pin number to facilitate online payments. “We continue to study the Mozambican market and ask” how can we help you? “, in an effort to introduce more innovative products and solutions to the Mozambican market,” he concluded.

    The lounges of the FirstRand group (of which FNB Mozambique is part) are already present in countries such as Namibia, Zambia, Botswana and South Africa and are designed to be the best in hospitality.

    The opening of the lounge, is part of the strategy of revitalizing and modernizing the services of the financial institution for its customers, as well as the new positioning of the company, with the motto “an out of the ordinary bank”. This is the result of a new positioning of FNB Mozambique, aiming to offer greater comfort, convenience and excellence, becoming more and more like an innovative banking institution and always ready to create solutions that meet the needs of its clients.

  • Kinshasa Joins Fly Dubai’s Growing Network in Africa

    Dubai-based Flydubai has announced the start of flights to Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) from 15 April. The daily flights will operate with an enroute stop in nearby Entebbe and will also be available for booking through the Emirates codeshare agreement.

    flydubai becomes the first UAE carrier to operate flights to N’djili Airport (also known as Kinshasa International Airport) and provide links from the UAE and the region to a new gateway in Central Africa.

    Commenting on the launch, Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer of flydubai, said: “Africa is fast emerging as one of the most important markets for the United Arab Emirates and we have seen the trade relationship going from strength to strength in recent years. With the proximity to the continent and rising demand to more direct links to Africa, we see this new service to Kinshasa playing an instrumental role in further supporting the growing trade and tourism flows in the coming years.”

    Kinshasa is one of the largest cities in Africa and a busy hub providing extensive connections to cities across the African continent and intercontinental services to Europe. The country is known for its vast natural resource wealth; it is the world’s largest producer of cobalt and a major producer of copper and diamonds.

    “The number of African companies registered with Dubai Chamber exceeded 12,000 in 2017, which demonstrates the increased cooperation and opportunity between both sides,” said Sudhir Sreedharan, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations (GCC, Subcontinent and Africa). “We are looking forward to operating this route and exploring more opportunities to expand our network in Africa in the near future, while offering passengers a reliable and unrivalled onboard service whether they are travelling in Business or Economy Class,” he added.

    Passengers travelling to and from Kinshasa will have the option of a Business Class experience, benefitting from priority check-in service, comfortable spacious seats and a range of dining options. Passengers travelling in Economy Class will have access to comfortable seating and a convenient way to travel.

    Since the start of its operations in 2009, flydubai has built up a comprehensive network in Africa with flights to Addis Ababa, Alexandria, Asmara, Djibouti, Entebbe, Hargeisa, Juba, Khartoum and Port Sudan, as well as Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar.

    Business Class return fares will start at AED 6,000 (FC 1,700) and are inclusive of all taxes and 40kg checked baggage. Economy Class return fares will start at AED 2,700 (FC 460) including 20kg checked baggage.

    Flights can be booked through flydubai’s website (flydubai.com), Contact Centre in Dubai on (00971) 600 54 44 45, the flydubai travel shops or through our travel partners.

    See Flight Timings (in Local Time): https://goo.gl/HqgcYq

  • Entebbe-Nairobi: Flying Gets Easier as Jambojet Joins the Club

    Flying between Entebbe and Nairobi is now getting much easier than it used to be just a couple of years ago when there were only a few options. For many years, this route was dominated by just a few airlines, with Kenya Airways and RwandAir taking the lion’s share.

    But in the recent past, Etihad, KLM, African Express Airways and Fly-Sax have all joined the club, and now Jambojet – the low-cost carrier arm of Kenya Airways – is flying between Nairobi and Entebbe every day of the week.

    “Jambojet will operate double daily flights with departures from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) at 09.10hrs and 17.30 hrs. The flight will depart Entebbe International Airport for Nairobi at 11.00 hrs and 19.20 hrs daily,” the airline said recently in a statement.

    The airline’s inaugural flight to Uganda will land at Entebbe International Airport at 10:30am tomorrow, February 15, and Jambojet is using its recently acquired 78-seater turboprop Bombardier Next Gen Q400 for this new service.

    Tomorrow’s flight – the start of a two-times-a-day service – represents the four-year-old carrier’s first service out of Kenya. Jambojet operates a relatively young fleet of four Dash 8 Q400 aircraft and has only been flying within Kenya, serving Eldoret, Kisumu, Malindi, Mombasa, Nairobi and Ukunda.

    “We are delighted to launch a direct service to Entebbe, a much-anticipated addition to our network where we will offer frequent and new flyers even more affordable fares,” Willem Hondius, Jambojet’s top honcho, said recently in a statement. “This new route will connect businesses in Kenya and Uganda while also appealing to leisure travellers, offering them the opportunity to experience the ‘Pearl of Africa’.”

    The airline says one-way tickets on the Entebbe-Nairobi route will start from $116.

  • RwandAir to Start Flights to Abuja, Cape Town

    RwandAir has announced that it will soon commence flights to Abuja in Nigeria and Cape Town in South Africa. Rwanda’s national carrier will operate four weekly flights from Kigali to Cape Town with a stopover in Harare. The Abuja flight will be tagged to the existing Accra route, where the flight will stop in Abuja before heading to Accra and it will also be operated four times a week.

    “This is yet another big milestone for RwandAir as we continue to expand our network. Our aim is to provide to our customers seamless and better connections on the continent and beyond. Abuja and Cape Town come in as a boost to the different economies in terms of tourism and trade on one hand, and enhance bilateral partnership between our countries on the other hand,” said Chance Ndagano, Ag. CEO of RwandAir.

    Commonly referred to as the Mother City, Cape Town is a port city on South Africa’s southwest coast, on a peninsula beneath the Table Mountain, one of the top tourist attractions of the city along with Cape Point, Cape of Good Hope and Robben Island. Built in 1980s, Abuja is the capital city of Nigeria and is the only city in Africa that was built solely for the purpose of being the capital city. Abuja’s top tourist attractions include Aso Rock, Gurara waterfalls, Millennium Park, National Ecumenical Center and the Abuja National Mosque to name but a few.

    The two new destinations will take RwandAir’s destinations to 26.

  • British Airways on the Hunt for Nashville’s next Biggest Hit

    Calling all songwriters, British Airways is on the hunt for Nashville’s next biggest hit. The airline is looking for the new Bob Dylan, Dolly Parton or Sheryl Crow, and wants to give undiscovered talent the chance to write a hit record ahead of the launch of their new direct service to Music City.

    From May 2018, British Airways will launch a five-a-week service from Heathrow, Terminal 5 and will be the only carrier flying direct between Europe and the capital of Tennessee.

    In partnership with the airline, multi- PLATINUM singer-songwriter, Kip Moore; GRAMMY Award winning songwriter and owner of Cornman Music, Brett James; and Vice President of A&R for Starlight Publishing, Alex Torrez, Nashville – the home of the largest songwriting community in the world – is putting a call out to all amateur songwriters of any genre or level of talent and giving them the chance to have their songs heard. The budding songwriters will be asked to write a three-minute song which focuses on London, Nashville and travel, and entries will be judged on originality, melody, composition and lyrics. The winner will then be selected by Moore, James and Torrez.

    On March 8 the winner will attend the CMA Songwriters Series and meet Kip Moore and Brett James at Europe’s biggest country music festival, C2C: Country 2 Country, which takes place at London’s O2 arena. The successful songwriter and a friend will then jet off to Nashville as the exclusive prize package includes return flights and six nights’ accommodation at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel. While in town, they will also be given tickets to the Grand Ole Opry, as well visit the Songwriters Round at the world-famous Bluebird Cafe, before rounding off the VIP trip with tickets to the illustrious CMA Fest.

    Kip Moore said “As someone who is fortunate enough to travel to London for shows frequently, having this new bridge between London and Nashville is amazing and I’m so happy to be involved with this initiative. The songwriting community is personally something I am very passionate about raising awareness for, and being a part of finding new talent is exciting. I’m looking forward to hearing the entries and I’m sure we’re going to find some incredibly talented songwriters.”

    Entrants will need to be aged over 21 years old, able to travel from London to Nashville on June 5, and are asked to submit their entry online by midnight GMT on February 19, 2018. The winner will be contacted by February 28, 2018. The song must include one verse and a chorus and must be originals only.

    British Airways’ new route takes the number of US destinations the airline flies to from London in summer 2018 up to 26, and the number of daily flights offered by British Airways and American Airlines as part of their transatlantic joint business up to 67 per day.

    The route will be operated by a Boeing 787-8, with return fares in World Traveller starting from £749, £1196 in World Traveller Plus and £1849 in Club World available to book now on ba.com.

    To find out more about ‘Write a Song, Win a Seat’ and to read the full terms and conditions go to: www.visitmusiccity.com/basongwriter

    Electronic entries should be uploaded to: www.visitmusiccity.com/basongwriter

    About Kip Moore

    Multi-PLATINUM singer/songwriter Kip Moore is following up his recent No. One smash hit “More Girls Like You,” with the release of his “smoldering” (Rolling Stone) new single ”Last Shot.” The track is the second single taken from his third studio album “SLOWHEART,” praised by critics across the country as he “blends the passion and connection for which he’s known with a new self-awareness that will speak to both commercial and underground audiences” (USA Today.) SLOWHEART follows the acclaim that surrounded Moore’s sophomore album WILD ONES heralded as “an impressively singular release from Music Row” by The Guardian and his PLATINUM debut album UP ALL NIGHT that spawned three No. One hit singles including GOLD certified “Beer Money,” PLATINUM certified “Hey Pretty Girl,” and the DOUBLE PLATINUM breakout hit “Somethin’ ‘Bout A Truck. For more information and a full list of tour dates, visit kipmoore.net.

  • British Airways now offers flights for 50% fewer Avios

    British Airways is offering customers the chance to travel the world for half the number of Avios usually required.

    Available for booking from today until December 17, the airline will offer World Traveller (long-haul economy) flights from Heathrow or Gatwick to more than 90 long-haul destinations for 50 per cent fewer Avios.

    This means that customers can book a return flight to Toronto or New York using just 13,000 Avios instead of 26,000, to Johannesburg for 16,250 Avios instead of 32,500 or to Hong Kong for 19,500 Avios instead of 39,000.

    Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ director of brand and customer experience, said: “Our latest offer makes travelling the world even more accessible for our Executive Club members. Whether they’re looking for a city break or to relax on the beach, they can reach popular destinations like New York, Punta Cana or Hong Kong for half the number of Avios they’d usually spend. And with more than 90 destinations on offer in the sale, there really is an option for everyone.”

    British Airways Executive Club members can find availability and book reward flights through ba.com/redemption-sale. Customers will need to pay a cash amount to cover taxes, fees and carrier charges, and travel between January 4 and June 30, 2018.

    An example of just some of the destinations available are below:

    Example destination Avios price for return flight now Avios price for return flight was
    Toronto 13,000 26,000
    New York 13,000 26,000
    Boston 13,000 26,000
    Dubai 13,000 26,000
    Tampa 16,250 32,500
    Johannesburg 16,250 32,500
    Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) 16,250 32,500
    Fort Lauderdale 16,250 32,500
    Los Angeles 16,250 32,500
    Hong Kong 19,500 39,000
    Shanghai 19,500 39,000

     

  • Antonov AN-26B aircraft crashes in Goma

    Air traffic in Goma was brought to a halt yesterday when an Antonov 26B, suffering the loss of engine power after take off, returned to the airport but overshot the runway and ended up in a section covered with volcanic rock.

    As a result did the aircraft sustain major damage to landing gear, engine, hull and wing.

    Reportedly was none of the crew injured during the landing incident.

    Registered as 9S-AFL and operated by Congo’s Services Air was the aircraft enroute from Goma to Kisangani when the crew opted to return to Goma after reporting the loss of engine power.

    According to information received did the plane however touch down too far down the runway, causing it to run into the volcanic rock which covers part of the runway and airport from a past eruption.

    The aircraft, MSN 14003, has been 32 years in service with the first flight undertaken in 1985.

    Services Air is on the EU black list of airlines banned for flights into or across European airspace and suffered previous incidents in December 2015, May 2009 and January 2005, two of them also with Antonov’s 26 and one with an Airbus A310F. The A310F accident in Mbuji Mayi caused multiple casualties on the ground while in the case of the two Antonov 26 accidents near Isiro and Entebbe respectively casualties included the crew.

  • Kenya Bans Plastic Bags, Violators to Be Fined $38,000

    Kenya joins over 40 countries that have made plastic bags illegal, in a positive effort to reduce the impact on our environment. However, there may be implications for our guests traveling to this region, as the use, manufacture and importation of all plastic bags is now illegal in Kenya.

    The ban applies to:

    • Carrier bags with handles & with or without gussets.
    • Flat bags without handles & without gussets.

    Please take note that if you are traveling to Nairobi, plastic bags that match the above description, including duty free bags, will be confiscated at the airport. There is however a bigger risk that if anyone is caught using these plastic bags the fine is Ksh. 4,000,000 approximately US$38,000 or prison sentences of up to four years.

    It is our opinion that with immediate effect we advise our guests and our own teams to refrain from using all forms of ‘disposable’ plastic carrying bags in both main luggage and hand luggage, to avoid inconveniences and possibly prosecution.

    Kenya has joined other East African countries that include Rwanda and Ethiopia in banning plastic bags. Many conservationists and tour operators have applauded Kenya’s move towards reducing waste in its official ban of plastic bags.