Zimbabwe signs 7 Air Services Agreements

 The government says it has ratified seven bilateral air services agreements in a development which will see more tourist arrivals and an improvement on the sector's gross domestic product (GDP) contribution. The Minister of Tourism and Hospitality, Walter Mzembi revealed that cabinet approved the ratification of seven bilateral air service agreements, adding that the move is expected to boost the sector's revenue and its contribution to the GDP.

Mzembi, who was addressing senior army officers at the Zimbabwe Staff College, said his ministry has adopted several strategies which will be used to achieve the targets which were set by the government. "We are expected to contribute at least $3 billion to the GDP by 2018 from the current $851 million," he said. Mzembi said some of the strategies to improve the tourism sector's GDP contribution include the liberalisation of visas and the internal distribution of tourists. Currently, the tourism sector contributes 10 percent to the GDP.

Meanwhile, airline passengers have increased by 24 percent with the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) saying the figures recorded last year confirm that the country's connectivity has improved. A total of 594 000 arrivals came through local airports in 2013 up from 481 000 in 2012. Harare International Airport accounted for the bulk of the arrivals. CAAZ attributed the increase to improved connectivity brought about by new airlines in the skies. The hosting of major conferences such as the UNWTO General Assembly, as well as Air Zimbabwe's resumption of normal services were also cited as other factors that contributed to the increase in arrivals.

Local travel and tourism executive, Zodwa Mkandla said the government should be commended for its extensive marketing efforts of the country, highlighting that this augurs well for the tourism industry. "This means the airlines are making money, the travel agents are making money and I am sure CAAZ is smiling all the way to the bank," she said. Data from CAAZ shows that Harare International Airport recorded 435 000 arrivals, 90 percent of which were international arrivals while Victoria Falls and Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo airports recorded 107 000 and 45 100 passengers respectively.
 

Air travel has been on the increase in the country since Zimbabwe embraced some of the key principles of the open skies policy. Some of the airlines that resumed flights into the country include Emirates, British Airways, Mozambique's lAM Airlines, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Egypt Air.

 

Source: Bulawayo24

SA Express Apply for Bulawayo Route

SA Express have officially applied for 3 weekly flights on the Johannesburg (OR Tambo) - Bulawayo (Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo) route. The application was submitted and the end of 2013 and if SAX is granted rights on this route, it will join SA Airlink and Air Zimbabwe which both operate daily flights between the two cities. A recent article stated that the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) and Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) have teamed up in-order to market the airport amid fears the facility could become a white elephant. We will be keeping you up-to-date regarding developments on this possible route.    

CAAZ Plans to Market Bulawayo’s Joshua Nkomo Airport

The Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (Caaz) has said it is working with the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) to market multi-million dollar Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport on the outskirts of Bulawayo amid fears the airport could become a white elephant. Bulawayo has suffered massive de-indutrialisation over the last decade or so. Speaking during his seventh inauguration as president in Harare after a July 31 general elections triumph, Mugabe said although industries had collapsed countywide, Bulawayo’s industrial base had shrunk to “scrapyard levels”. The new terminal, which has state-of -art facilities, received its first flight on November 1 following a directive by President Robert Mugabe to start operating.

 The facility, which has a capacity to handle 1,5 million passengers a year, has been under construction for more than a decade during which it missed several deadlines to commence operations. For years the airport has been handling the arrival and departure of domestic and international flights under a makeshift aircraft hangar made of corrugated iron sheets transformed into a temporary terminal.

 

Last week Caaz chief executive officer David Chawota said they would not allow the airport to become a white elephant. “Arrangements for keeping the airport busy are in place. We cannot have a situation where the airport is underutilised,” said Chawota.  “We will go all out to ensure that this facility gets maximum exposure. We are working with the ZTA to sell the country to international visitors,” said Chawota.

There are concerns that due to massive company closures countrywide as the economy continues to struggle the airport would be underutilised. The airport can handle 400 passengers arriving and another 400 departing during peak hours. There are about 15 contractors working on the project that includes the refurbishment of the international arrivals’ hall, a variety of shops and a car park with a holding capacity of about 400 cars and a separate state pavilion. In addition to a business lounge, the airport houses bars, banks and the Joshua Nkomo gallery. In the lead-up to the November opening, some companies and service providers that had signed contracts to operate at the airport pulled out citing delays.

 

 

 

Article by Nqobile Bhebhe of the Zimbabwe Independent.

PICS: New Bulawayo Airport Terminal

 

Special thank you to Zimkids Orphan Trust for the pictures.

Bulawayo's Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport Opens

 

Bulawayo's Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport has finally been opened for public use after years of delay. The new terminal will have a handling capacity of 1.5 million passengers annually. The terminal has taken more than 10 years and $25 million to refurbish and will have a new international arrivals’ hall, a variety of shops, a car park and a separate State pavilion.

It will still be incomplete when it opens, but CAAZ said the facility will have all the requisite safety, security systems and ambient characteristics of a modern airport. "Although the terminal is undergoing its final stages of completion, it has become absolutely necessary to operationalise the facility to allow utilisation of the already installed systems,” said CAAZ.

Only two airlines, South Africa Airlink and Air Zimbabwe use the airport. SA Airlink, a South African Airways service, plies the Bulawayo-Johannesburg route daily but has a capacity of 83 passengers. Air Zimbabwe flies to Harare and the resort town on Victoria Falls.

Air Zimbabwe Special Fares

Air Zimbabwe is currently offering special fares on several routes. The Harare-Bulawayo flight has gone down from $300 to $105. A one-way ticket for the same route is $61. The Harare-Victoria Falls flight is down from US$421 to US$180 while return Harare-Johannesburg is now US$275 from US$420. One way flights for the same routes are $140 and $150 respectively. These fares are valid until 31 July. The national airline has been struggling with negative perception due to mismanagement in the past few years.

Air Zimbabwe receives first Airbus A320

Air Zimbabwe has taken delivery of the first of two Airbus A320's, which is expected to operate on  regional routes ahead of the country hosting the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) in August 2013. The plane, which was under going routine maintenance and safety checks yesterday at the Harare International Airport, had already had the airline’s livery. According to the airline, the A320 will start operating on the Harare-Johannesburg route soon.

Air Zimbabwe has so far resumed daily flights to Victoria Falls, Bulawayo and Johannesburg.
The airline’s board chairperson Ozias Bvute told Parliament in March that Air Zimbabwe will resume international flights to London in July this year after beefing up its fleet as part of its turnaround strategy.

“We have looked at route viability and we have identified the short-term routes that we think we want to concentrate on and ensure that those routes are managed and serviced properly for the benefit of our travelling partners,” Bvute said then.

Can Air Zimbabwe Become Successful Once Again?

Air Zimbabwe, the seemingly ailing national carrier is currently undergoing a restructuring programme aimed at making the airline competitive once again. Burdened with large debts and an ageing fleet of Boeing 767-200ERs and 737-200's, the carrier recently announced a fleet renewal exercise as part of the restructuring programme. Currently two Airbus A320's have joined the fleet with one recently undergoing safety inspections and certified to operate on regional routes such as HRE-JNB. Plans have also been availed to acquire new short range Embraer jets from the Brazilian maker.

But what exactly is the long term strategy for Air Zimbabwe? Several new routes have been mentioned including Durban, Mauritius, London, Lagos and Munich but is this really the best option? Currently the dominant legacy carriers on the African continent include South African Airways, EgyptAir, Ethiopian Airlines and Kenyan Airways. They are mainly characterized by their large fleets, hub-networks, expansive route-links as well as allegiances to alliances (Star Alliance, SkyTeam).

So the question is, can Air Zimbabwe compete with these dominant carriers? At the moment we have several smaller carriers making their mark on the African continent. These include Rwandair, Precisionair and probably the new player in the game Fastjet. So unlike the European and .U.S. markets where competition is highly saturated, the African market still has major potential for growth. So my next question is were does Air Zimbabwe fit into this whole picture?

As the legacy carrier that Air Zimbabwe currently is, the need to adopt a hybrid strategy can be critical to the revival of the airline. With the current small fleet it operates, a point to point strategy can be adopted where they focus on cutting costs and increasing efficiency, a strategy done very successfully by Easy Jet. At the moment Air Zimbabwe operates a Boeing 767-200ER on the HRE-JNB route which sits all day in Johannesburg before returning to Harare in the evening. The airline can adopt a fast turn-around strategy were they can do 4-8 profitable daily shifts between Harare and Johannesburg. But you ask, is there really a market for this? My answer is simply YES, but the challenge is the price. Middle income earners are not able to pay the current lowest price charged by SAA and BA Comair of $400 return trip. Air Zimbabwe can utilize their crew efficiently and adopt ancillary revenues methods from non-ticket sources such as baggage fees, food & beverage etc. Remember we are talking about point to point basis here so why not even fly into the cheaper airports like Lanseria.

Implementing Revenue Management systems to strategically control inventory, availability on GDS (Global Distribution Systems), and a reliable web presences can assist dearly in Air Zimbabwe's renewal. Some routes were Air Zim can successfully operate on a point-to-point include; Harare-Johannesburg, Harare-Cape Town, Harare-Durban, Bulawayo-Johannesburg, Victoria Falls-Johannesburg, just to name a few.
In conclusion, Air Zimbabwe can become a successful carrier once again with the right management team in place and a strategy that fits their current situation. We wish them best of luck in the near future.

Written by; Mlandeli Ndlela at HREAirportblog

Fresh-Air Launching Soon!!!

Their website is still in progress, stay tuned for more info. http://www.fly-fresh.com