Uganda Airlines is back into the skies after being revived. The first destination for the maiden flight was from Entebbe to Nairobi’s JKIA.
Ugandan flyers who have in the past been connecting to various capitals through Nairobi, Kigali and Addis Ababa, using Kenya Airways, Rwandair and Ethiopian Airlines will soon enjoy direct flights to Mombasa, Juba, Mogadishu, and Dar es Salaam.
The airline’s first commercial trip to Nairobi from Entebbe will cost 28,684 shillings ($278) for a return trip, and approximately 14,342 shillings one way.
Uganda Airlines subsequent trips to Juba, Mogadishu, Dar es Salaam, and Mombasa, which are a part of a total seven destinations in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, and Burundi will cost $285 for a round trip to Juba, $545 for Mogadishu, and $286 for Dar-es-salaam.
Ugandan works and transport minister, Monica Azuba said the move will see that connectivity and regional integration is improved.
The carrier will initially ply the routes with the four Bombardier CRJ900 planes, two of which arrived in April while two are expected mid-September, according to the CEO of the revived airline Ephraim Bagenda.
“We have also ordered Airbus (A330 Neo) which is likely to be delivered after 18 months. We expect that when the airline grows its flight network, the wide-body planes will facilitate the long-haul routes such as to China and other Asian countries, whose tourists Uganda is keen to attract,” said Ms. Azuba.
If Uganda launches long-haul trips to Asia, it will be a blow to KQ since the airline’s average ticket to those routes has declined due to competition.
KQ is already facing severe economic challenges that caused it to sink into losses of more than 27 billion shillings. The airline acknowledges that some of these losses are as a result of increased competition and overcapacity on intra-Africa and Africa-Asia traffic.