Malawi Airlines eyes 3-nation expansion
Malawi Airlines Limited has unveiled plans to extend its flights to three African nations, namely Mozambique, Rwanda and Uganda as it strives to stamp its authority on the continent.
The airline’s head of commercial Charles Ng’ambi said this on Friday when the company unveiled an addition to its aircraft fleet, Boeing 737-700, at the Kamuzu International Airport (KIA) Lilongwe.
He said the 118-seater plane was acquired in response to growing demand for its services and network expansion plans.
Said Ng’ambi: “We plan to add routes on our daily flight schedules that is Pemba and Nampula in Mozambique, Kigali in Rwanda, Entebbe in Uganda and Johannesburg in South Africa for an evening flight.”
The Boeing 737 700 takes to three the number of aircrafts owned by Malawian Airlines, which currently flies to Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Kenya and South Africa and Lusaka.
Meanwhile, KIA acting airport commandant Fredrick Chisepeya has said the addition of a new aircraft is a sign that demand for the country’s air transport services is increasing.
“Again, to us and Department of Civil Aviation, it is a warning that we have to up our levels of provision of services more especially the safety as of it,” he said.
Malawi Airlines Limited is a registered public private partnership company with shareholding between the Malawi Government, which owns 51 percent and Ethiopian Airlines holding 49 percent stake.
Before acquiring the Boeing 737-700, the airline had two aircrafts, a 130-seater Boeing 737-800 for prime regional destinations and a 78-seat Bombardier Q400 for mostly low traffic regional routes.
The airliner was issued with an Airline Operating Certificate on January 3 2014.
Malawi Airlines Limited is a successor of the liquidated State-owned Air Malawi Limited.
