Monica Azuba, the minister of works and transport has said Bombardier was the best choice for the revamped Uganda Airlines.
The minister, who officially received two Uganda Airlines’ CRJ900 aircrafts from Bombadier on Tuesday also added that the first of the two planes will touch down at Entebbe International Airport on April 23.
Uganda Airlines will be the first airline in Africa to operate CRJ900 planes, the first in the series to have the new cabin enhancements.
“I officially received the two CRJ900 aircrafts on behalf of Government of Uganda. They will touch down at Entebbe Airport on 23/04/2019. The choice of Bombardier CRJ900 for regional networks was a result of rigorous analysis of many competing alternatives. Bombardier was the best choice,” she tweeted on Wednesday from Quebec, Canada.
“I also asked Bombardier to consider establishing a training and maintenance facility in Uganda to skill Ugandans and also enhance Bombardier’s competitiveness in Africa. Uganda is ready to partner with them on this!”
Before flying out last week, minister Azuba said, “It is important to note when the aircraft arrive they will not immediately start commercial flights until they complete the Air Operator Certification (AOC certification) process.”
“This process has five phases and will take approximately 90 days to complete setting the timeline for start of commercial operations to be July 2019.”
During this 90 day certification process, Bombardier will be showcasing the CRJ900 new cabin to other countries across Africa as a marketing strategy.
Currently Uganda has signed forty seven (47) Bilateral Air Services Agreements (BASAs) with other countries which will need to be activated.
The national carrier will fly to 19 destinations around Africa, and add international flights by 2024.
According to sources, the airline will not compete aggressively with already established carriers like Kenya Airways and RwandAir, but ‘will instead operate a unique business models centred on flight frequency to the destinations, especially those in Africa.”
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