Emirates Airline to increase flights

THE Emirates Airline will increase flights to Harare in Zimbabwe and Lusaka, to six times a week by October this year from the current five.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) based Airline launched its Lusaka and Harare route last week said the move will ease connectivity from the two countries to Dubai and other destinations world-wide.

Emirates Airline senior vice-president for commercial operations in Africa Jean-Luc Grillet said sound economic policies existing in Zambia had resulted in increased volumes of tourists, traders and investors travelling to and from Lusaka, hence the need for the airline to exploit such an opportunity.

Addressing journalists in Lusaka, Mr Grillet said the airline had a cargo capacity of 16,000 tonnes and this would enhance exports from Zambia to various destinations adding that the airline is committed to contributing to the country’s economic growth through the facilitation of efficient connectivity.

Air Zimbabwe's Recovery ruined as Emirates Airlines Opens Harare Route

Emirates Airlines made its maiden flight to Harare Wednesday amid pomp and fanfare with the airline set to connect Zimbabweans to more than 100 destinations around the world and boost the country’s recovering tourism industry.

Several cabinet ministers, civil aviation officials and representatives of the airline attended the ceremony which critics said may well spell doom to the financially crippled Air Zimbabwe, which recently suspended some of its regional and international flights in fear of having its planes impounded by creditors.

Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi told VOA's Gibbs Dube that Emirates Airlines will operate five Zimbabwe flights a week, linking Harare with Zambia, Dubai, Europe, Asia and other international destinations.

Mzembi said the airline is expected to promote tourism in Zimbabwe which is anticipated to generate US$5 billion for the country by 2015.

The minister said the Emirates arrival was a wake up call for the struggling Air Zimbabwe which used to compete with more than 45 airlines that operated in Harare in the 1990s.

Economic analyst Masimba Kuchera observed that Emirates Airlines will help promote economic growth in Zimbabwe.

Emirates Increase Flights to Zimbabwe

The entry into Zimbabwe by international carrier Emirates and the increased number of flights to Zimbabwean destinations by South African Airways will avert a near-collapse of the local aviation sector, economists and analysts say, as the beleaguered Air Zimbabwe has failed to return to full operation.

From next month, Emirates will launch a five-times-a-week transcontinental service linking Harare, Lusaka, Dubai and the UAE. Tourism, which relies heavily on a strong and vibrant aviation sector, is projected to rebound on the back of this development.

Global aviation market intelligence organisation Centre for Aviation says Emirates' flights linking Zimbabwe, Zambia and the UAE would "provide Zimbabwe with its first link to the Middle East that could then open lines to new trading partners in the Gulf" and beyond.

SAA has increased its capacity in Zimbabwe by introducing a daily 222-seat A330-200 flight linking Johannesburg and Harare, bringing its total frequency to 21 times a week and increasing its capacity and frequency by 66%.

Though no official comment could immediately be obtained from the SAA's Zimbabwe office, country manager Winnie Mudariki had previously said the Zimbabwe operation was lucrative "and extremely viable" for the company.

Overall seat capacity for Zimbabwe is now expected to increase to 67 000 in May - from 64 000 in December last year.

Reports also say Air Namibia will return to Harare "for the first time in 13 years" when it launches its four-times-a-week flights linking Harare and Windhoek on April 1 this year.

Economist Onias Manyunga saidthe international and regional airline operators applied for their licences long before Air Zimbabwe's problems worsened.

Regional Airlines Take Over Airzim Clientele

Victoria Falls — REGIONAL airlines have taken over beleaguered Air Zimbabwe's Victoria Falls clientele.

With Air Zimbabwe having indefinitely suspended servicing its domestic, regional and international routes citing "viability" challenges, its competitors have stepped in to fill the void.

According to sources at the Victoria Falls International Airport, South African Airways and British Airways (Comair) are now plying the Johannesburg-Victoria Falls route daily. Air Namibia lands at Victoria Falls Airport about three times a week.

Some visitors to the resort town are also using One Time Airways, Zambia Airways and other airlines from South Africa that land just across in Livingstone town.

As if that competition is not enough, there are about three airlines that have proposed to fly into Victoria Falls in a development that could see increased traffic and revenue for the tourism sector.

Recently, Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe chief executive officer, Mr David Chawota told Chronicle that three new long haul airlines were courting the authority to fly direct into the resort town. He also said Fly Emirates had already indicated that it would start flying into the country next month landing at Harare International Airport.

Commenting on the matter, the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Engineer Walter Mzembi, said it would have been wonderful to see the national airline being one of the airlines competing on the different routes.

"We need a paradigm shift here; we must see the opening up of domestic air routes and liberalisation of the airspace. Victoria Falls has become accessible to foreigners as foreign airlines continue landing here yet we say charity should begin at home," he said.

According to tour and adventure operators the landing of more airlines either in Livingstone or Victoria Falls should be commended as it was a clear sign that the tourism sector was now out of the doldrums after years of continued demonisation of the country by its detractors who included the Western media.

"For the tourism sector, it is a pity that our national pride has been compromised by Air Zimbabwe's failure to play a leading role. We are, however, happy that our clients coming in either through Livingstone or direct into Victoria Falls, are being serviced by other airlines.

"We commend the Government for considering other airlines that have expressed interest in landing in the country. We need to open the airspace and allow more players because at the end of the day it is the number of visitors that counts," said an operator on condition of anonymity.

Other operators who spoke on condition of anonymity said it was true that some travel agents were omitting Air Zimbabwe on their lists of airlines.

"It is no secret that travel agents are omitting Air Zimbabwe. This is because of its track record where travellers have grown accustomed to delays and cancellations. Right now some of the employees are on strike and as long as it is like that, no traveller in his or her right senses will choose Air Zimbabwe," said the operator.

A total of 18 international airlines have left the country in the last 10 years due to economic challenges facing the country and negative publicity.

These include Lufthansa, Qantas, Austrian Airlines, Swissair, Air India, Air France and TAP Air Portugal.

African airlines that no longer fly into Harare include Egyptair, Air Mauritius, Linhas Aereas de Mocambique, Air Namibia, Royal Swazi Airlines and Air Seychelles. Air Tanzania, Ghana Airways, Air Uganda and Air Cameroon have also pulled out.

Air Zimbabwe suspends flights to London, Johannesburg

ZIMBABWE’S National Airline, Air Zimbabwe, has suspended all flights to London with immediate effect.

This was announced by the Air Zimbabwe chairman Jonathan Kadzura on Sunday.

The company is a parastal, 100 percent owned by the Zimbabwe government.

This news follows an incident at London’s Gatwick Airport where one of Air Zimbabwe’s planes was recently impounded by an American aviation firm to which the carrier owed $1.5 million.

The company’s chairman added that Air Zimbabwe was also halting flights to Johannesburg, South Africa, citing financial reasons.

Kadzura said the national airline no longer has the capacity to service the Harare-London and Harare-Johannesburg routes.

Air Zimbabwe planes in Johannesburg were also targeted by creditors who last month impounded one of them on South African soil.

Kadzura said flights to South Africa remain suspended as the airline is still negotiating with ground handling firm Bid Air Services to settle an overdue debt of $500,000.

The airline will maintain flights to China, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.

American General Supplies recently impounded an Air Zimbabwe Boeing 767-200 and held it until the airline settled a $1.5 million account for spares and other equipment.

Kadzura said the Zimbabwe inclusive Government does not want to rescue the national airline.

Impounded Air Zim plane scheduled to arrive

Zimbabwe: The Air Zimbabwe plane which was impounded in London over a $1,5 million debt owed to United States-based American General Supplies (AGS), is now scheduled to arrive in the country on Sunday.

The plane had been scheduled to arrive today after the government settled the debt.

The plane which was supposed to leave yesterday is said to have developed a technical fault that needed attention.
Acting Air Zimbabwe chief executive officer Innocent Mavhunga confirmed the latest development saying: “We are still working on the aircraft and other logistics too so that the plane will leave as soon as possible. We are in the process of arranging that. The plane will leave after clearance.”
Sources at the airline said they had been advised aircraft had not yet been fixed because the spares had been bought outside the United Kingdom and are yet to arrive.
“We have been advised that the spares will now arrive in the UK from the US yesterday afternoon due to delays in movement of money transfers hence the Thursday hangar slot is lost,” said the source.
“The plane will now be repaired on Friday evening on the only first available slot. UK Civil Aviation Authority will inspect it on Saturday and hopefully it will be certified to depart arriving here on Sunday.”
AGS impounded Airzim’s Boeing 767-200ER at Gatwick International Airport last Monday over the overdue debt. The Transport ministry sourced the money for the beleaguered airline which has struggled to pay its workers for the better part of this year.
After the plane was impounded, many passengers had to be rerouted and others reimbursed while many more were booked into hotels where some of them were later thrown out after the airline failed to pay for their accommodation, but Mavhunga dismissed the allegations.

Mugabe follows up on AirZim, Chinese aviation deal

Zimbabwe’s troubled national airline, Air Zimbabwe, could soon partner with a Chinese passenger carrier, the Zimbabwe Guardian has learnt.

President Mugabe is at the forefront of brokering a deal with Chinese airline, Hainani.

The president yesterday met a delegation from that airline to discuss possible ways of venturing into a partnership with troubled Air Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe’s ambassador to China, Frederick Shava expressed confidence of striking a deal with Hainani Airline, saying the airline has shown interest in operating in Zimbabwe.

The President also met the owners of Anjin Diamond – Chinese company licensed to mine diamonds in the country.

The meeting with the Chinese business people was also attended by the Minister of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Dr Joseph Made, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Simbarashe Mumbengegwi and government officials.

The president and all the officials are on a state visit to the eastern country.

President Mugabe and his delegation will conclude the state visit this Thursday.

Chinese state media reported that the Zimbabwe and China promised closer ties on infrastructure projects, agriculture, mining and trade.

But no details were given of any new deals that might have been signed.

Reuters news agency quoted Chinese official statistics as saying trade between the two countries was worth $717m in the first nine months of this year – a 62% rise compared with with the same period last year.

In March, China signed nearly $700 million in loan deals with Zimbabwe, and urged the government to protect Chinese firms from nationalisation plans.

China’s investments have been growing steadily in Zimbabwe and include diamond and chrome mining, platinum concessions, road construction, cotton and tobacco companies as well as a cement manufacturing plant.

Chinese vice-president Xi Jinping praised President Mugabe as an “old friend” of China and “a famed leader of the national liberation movement in Africa”.

“China is willing to join hands with Zimbabwe, enhance friendly exchanges, and expand practical cooperation,” Xi said after meeting with President Mugabe.

Chinese media reported that the two men agreed to deepen cooperation on projects related to infrastructure, agriculture, mining and trade.

Xi, who is likely to succeed Hu Jintao as China’s president in 2012, apparently is committed to increasing Beijing’s cooperation with African countries.

Air Zim Airbus Deal In Trouble

Harare-Zimbabwe: The Zimbabwean government is battling to register two airbus planes purchased early this year from Paris, France through a closely guarded deal between the government and a Chinese-Angolan joint venture company, China Sonangol, it has emerged.

Impeccable sources from Air Zimbabwe told that the government as the main shareholder was having some registration challenges to ensure that the planes can get to Zimbabwe.

“The team that visited France last month came back empty handed despite earlier commitments that the first delivery would be made before September 20, 2011. What I see as the biggest challenge is the issue of ownership of the planes because the management of Air Zimbabwe have no idea where the money to buy the planes is coming from,” said a source.
There is a lot of money involved, according to the source, and the government is not coming clean of the whole deal.
“The other solution was to have the planes registered through the Netherlands but it’s still not yet clear. The planes are a result of a deal with China Sonangol but the government is very quiet on it,” said the source.
However Air Zimbabwe board chairperson Jonathan Kadzura denied that the planes were being bought through a deal with Sonangol and denied to shed light.
“This certainly has nothing to do with Sonangol and because of the little information that I have, I can’t give you any further details,” said Kadzura before hanging his phone.
Air Zimbabwe acting chief executive officer Innocent Mavhunga declined to comment on the matter maintaining the matter was a shareholder issue.
“That is a shareholder issue and I can’t comment on that. I do not have any comments to make on that matter,” said Mavhunga.
In 2009 the government of Zimbabwe signed five deals with China Sonangol worth US$8 billion that were said would help the country see investment pour into various key sectors of the economy.
Key sectors that were said would benefit under the deal include mining and housing, among others.
The package was a culmination of a meeting between President Mugabe and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in Egypt at the summit of the Forum on China-Africa Co-operation.

Govt assumes Air Zim’s US$140mln debt

THE government will assume responsibility for Air Zimbabwe’s $140 million debt in a bid to help the technically insolvent flag-carrier back on its ‘wings’, Transport Minister Nicholas Goche has said.

The airline has been crippled by numerous operational problems including mounting debts, ageing aircraft, undercapitalization and labour disputes with key staff.

Goche said the government had agreed to takeover the debt and help find the company a technical partner.

“Last Thursday Cabinet … resolved that, Air Zimbabwe as a strategic Government asset and brand, needed to be preserved and supported as a going business concern,” Goche told The Herald.

“To this end, Government must assume Air Zimbabwe's current debt (currently standing at US$140 million) and ring fence the same."

Air Zimbabwe chief executive, Innocent Mavhunga recently urged government to help liquidate the airline’s huge debt pile comprising $112.7 million internal obligations and $25 million owed to institutions outside the country.

“Our cost of operating the business sits at about $6 to $7.5 million,” Mavhunga told Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on State Enterprises and Parastatals at a recent hearing.

Meanwhile, Goche said proceeds from the planned part-privatisation of the airline would be used to offset the debt while staff numbers would also be reduced to cut operating costs.

"In order to realise additional financing, there is urgent need to find a strategic partner for the national airline through private placement, that is, directly approaching would-be interested investors and forming a joint venture partnership," he said.

In addition, the National Handling Service (NHS), a subsidiary of the airline, would also be privatized to secure additional funds.

"Efforts to partially dispose of the National Handling Services should be pursued with urgency now in order to secure some financing from within the airline in order to avoid overburdening Treasury,” Goche said.

Harare Airport to have 'longest runway in Africa'

THE Harare International Airport will boast Africa’s longest runway by December as the country seeks to lure major international airlines, officials said on Monday.
In addition to the 5km runway costing US$30 million, the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) is also upgrading the Victoria Falls Airport runway which will give it capacity to land large aircraft like the Airbus.
CAAZ CEO David Chawota said they also expect work on the new Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport terminal building in Bulawayo to be complete within months as the country moves to reposition itself as a major tourist destination.
Finance Minister Tendai Biti went on a tour of the new Harare International Airport runway which is being constructed by local firm, Bitumen Construction Services.

He said: “The airport is the gateway to Zimbabwe and it is important to have first class, modern facilities.”

CAAZ is also upgrading information display systems at the Harare International Airport, along with surveillance and security systems equipment installed in 1992. A parliamentary report concluded last year that the facilities were “not fit for purpose”.
Biti stepped in to provide funding for the infrastructure projects forcing CAAZ to shelve plans for an Aviation Infrastructure Development Fund (AIDF) levy which would have seen domestic travellers charged US$10 and international passengers US$30.

CAAZ was aiming to raise US$400 million from the levy for the rehabilitation of airport infrastructure.

Air Zimbabwe sinks deeper

The crisis at Air Zimbabwe is set to worsen on Wednesday with threats by Zambezi Airlines to withdraw its aircraft leased to the beleaguered parastatal unless it paid $460 000 owed to the Zambian firm, NewsDay can reveal.

Sources told NewsDay on Tuesday night that Zambezi Airlines was likely to withdraw the aircraft it is leasing to Air Zimbabwe on Wednesday.

“Zambezi Airlines have given us up to Wednesday (today) to pay the $460 000 instalment which we were supposed to have paid on June 15. They had threatened to withdraw their aircraft on Monday but they have since given us up to Wednesday (today) to sort ourselves out,” said the source who requested anonymity.

Contacted for comment on Tuesday, Air Zimbabwe acting chief executive Innocent Mavhunga only said the airline had numerous problems which they were trying to address and that he was presently in meetings and as such could not comment.

The national airline is leasing an aircraft from Zambezi Airlines to service regional routes after its fleet of Boeing 737s was condemned by the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe early this year.

Air Zimbabwe is reeling under a heavy debt and last week, local suppliers of A1 Jet reportedly stopped supplying them with fuel, because the airline had failed to service its $1,6 million debt.

The airline had to cancel flights because of that. Pilots are also reportedly threatening to down tools over a salary dispute while the National Social Security Authority plans to attach Air Zimbabwe properties over unremitted workers’ pension contributions.

Air Zimbabwe is reportedly saddled with a $100 million debt.

Air Zimbabwe out of fuel

Zimbabwe's debt-ridden national airline has cancelled flights to London and South Africa because fuel companies have cut off its supplies because of unpaid bills.

A senior manager at the troubled carrier yesterday confirmed the flight cancellations.

"We had no option but to cancel London flights because suppliers refused to give us fuel for the trip," the manager said.

London-to-Harare flights were also cancelled.

Air Zimbabwe GM Innocent Mavhunga would not deny that the groundings were a result of failure to pay fuel suppliers.

"I would not want to comment on that," he said.

Air Zim too rotten to sell — minister

Air Zimbabwe is in such shambles and its financial position so hopeless it would be difficult to find takers even if the government decided to offload it, a Cabinet minister has said.

State Enterprises and Parastatals minister Gorden Moyo on Wednesday told the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on State Enterprises and Parastatal Management finding an investor to buy the ailing airline was likely to prove a mammoth task.

Moyo was responding to a question by Chiredzi North MP, Ronald Ndava, a member of the Portfolio Committee chaired by Zvishavane-Runde MP, Lawrence Mavima, who had asked him to explain why his ministry was not disposing of loss-making parastatals that were draining the fiscus.

“There are certain entities where we think surely, government should be out of,” Moyo said.

“But it may not be easy to sell Air Zimbabwe right now even if you want to offload it because you may not find a taker because of its state,” he said.

Moyo however said the difficulties facing Air Zimbabwe were not unique to Zimbabwe as a lot other airlines around the globe were performing very poorly. He cited Zambia Airways as an example.

“It is not just Air Zimbabwe which is suffering — very few airlines are doing business and it might be a big problem to sell Air Zimbabwe. A lot of parastatals are faced with huge debts and this on its own makes our parastatals unattractive to suitors. To get investors investing in a shell is not easy because of this debt overhang,” Moyo said. Moyo indicated most of the equipment in the country’s parastatals was dilapidated and archaic. To get investors to inject funds into businesses that were going under was not easy.

“The fiscal space is also too constricted to inject capital or even expertise into these entities especially given the serious human capital flight Zimbabwe has suffered,” he said.

State Enterprises and Parastatal Management deputy minister Walter Chidakwa said the issue of marketability to suitors by ailing parastatals was affected by tariffs.