ASKY and Dana Team Up
LAGOS-BASED DANA Air has entered
into a partnership agreement with
Togolese carrier ASKY Airlines, reports
airline intelligence provider ch-aviation.
The deal includes an interline agree-
ment, while Dana Air will wet-lease a
Boeing 737-700 from ASKY for a year.
Jacky Hathiramani, Dana Air Managing
Director, said: “We have also had
advanced talks with some other notable
aircraft manufacturers and very soon,
some aircraft outside the country on
maintenance will also be arriving. This
is part of our desire to provide optionsfor our guests who have also been
requesting us to consider some under-
served cities in Nigeria. We want to
assure our guests of our commitment
towards providing safe, reliable, afford-
able and world-class air transport ser-
vices in Nigeria.”Guinea and Ethiopian Co-operation
GUINEA AIRLINES signed a strategic
partnership deal with Ethiopian Airlines
on January 30, covering management,
maintenance and training support.
Tewolde GebreMariam, Ethiopian Group
CEO, said: “We are partnering with
Guinea Airlines and other African coun-tries because we have the capacity and
the expertise to support our African
brothers and sisters in the aviation sec-
tor. This is a trilateral partnership with
Guinea, ASKY Airlines and Ethiopian
Airlines with a view to fill the air con-
nectivity vacuum in [the] domesticGuinea market and between the Mano
River countries. The time has come
for Africans to join hands as one and
reclaim our rightful place in the global
aviation industry.”
Guinea Airlines plans to launch services
by the middle of the year.Air Peace
Widebody
Nigerian carrier Air Peace has added its first Boeing 777-21HER, 5N-BVE
(c/n 29324). The former Emirates jet, which was repainted by International
Aerospace Coatings in Dublin and delivered to Lagos on February 23, can
carry 274 passengers. London, Guangzhou and Houston are among the new
destinations Air Peace hopes to serve using the 777. PAUL DOYLEEmirates Firms A380 Order
EMIRATES HAS firmed up the
memorandum of understanding (MOU)
it signed in January for 20 Airbus
A380s and 16 options. The deal for all
36 aircraft is valued at $16bn, based on
list prices, with deliveries scheduled to
start in 2020.
The firm contract was signed on the
sidelines of the World Government
Summit in Dubai by Sheikh Ahmed
bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and
Chief Executive, Emirates Airline andGroup; and Mikail Houari, President
Airbus Africa Middle East.
Added to Emirates’ fleet of 101 aircraft,
plus its existing backlog for 41 jets, the
latest order takes company commit-
ments for the type to 178.
Sheikh Ahmed said: “This agreement
underscores our commitment to the
A380 programme, providing stability to
the A380 production line and
supporting tens of thousands of high-
value jobs across the aviation supplychain. For Emirates, the A380 has
been a successful aircraft for our
customers, our operations, and our
brand. We look forward to continue
working with Airbus to further enhance
the aircraft and onboard product.”
In other news, the Dubai-based carrier
is launching a new service from Dubai
to Auckland via Bali using a Boeing
777-300ER. The route is scheduled
to start on June 14.
(Photo Brian McDonough)http://www.airlinerworld.com 11News Review • Africa/Middle East
Low-cost carrier flydubai plans to start
flights to Kinshasa, Democratic Republic
of the Congo, on April 15. The daily
service will make a stop en route at
Entebbe, Uganda, and is available to book
via the Emirates codeshare agreement.
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 for 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.”Egyptian carrier AlMasria Universal
Airlines has added its first widebody jet,
Airbus A330-203 SU-TCH (c/n 661). The
former EVA Air aircraft, has been leased
from CDB Leasing and was delivered from
Teruel to Cairo on February 16.Qatar Airways has been forced to reduce
its new Doha-Cardiff service from daily to
five times weekly due to “a slight delay in
aircraft deliveries”, the BBC has reported.
The oneworld carrier’s new route to the
Welsh capital is scheduled to start on May
1 using a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. Qatar
Airways hopes to offer a daily connection
from June 18. (Photo Qatar Airways)Nigerian carrier Overland Airways plans
to launch international services later this
year. The airline’s Chief Operating Officer
Aanu Benson told the Aviation Business
Journal the carrier was eyeing flights from
its Lagos base to Cotonou (Benin), Lomé
(Togo), and Niamey (Niger).Kenya Airways will launch direct flights
to Mauritius in June. The new service will
operate four times per week using a two-
class Embraer 190. The jet is configured
with 12 seats in Business Class and 84 in
Economy Class. Kenya Airways already
has an existing codeshare agreement
on Air Mauritius’ three weekly flights
to Nairobi.Congo Airways made its international
debut on February 28 with the launch of a
new thrice-weekly service from Kinshasa
to Johannesburg, South Africa. The
flights are being operated using an Airbus
A320 with 15 seats in Business Class and
150 in Economy.Dubai Airport’s southern runway,
12R/30L, will be shut for 45 days in 2019
to enable resurfacing and upgrade works.
The strip will be closed from April 16 to
May 30 and airlines will have to reduce
their services to the airport because of
the reduction in capacity. The northern
runway underwent the same work in 2014.in brief