Aviation This Week – March Edition 4

This week on ‘Aviation This Week’, find topical highlights of events in the aviation industry from March 22 – 27, 2021 below:

United Airlines ready to operate in Ghana – US Ambassador

The US Ambassador to Ghana, Stephanie Sullivan says United Airlines is ready to begin commercial operations in Ghana. This follows a notice from the airline last year that it will commence a-3x weekly flights between Accra and Washington Dulles as part of its expansion program.

Checks from the country’s aviation regulator suggests that United has advanced preparations ahead of the relaunch of its operations in the country once again.

Pilot of PassionAir navigates bad weather to safely land plane

A female pilot with PassionAir, Eva Gichuru has won the hearts of many Ghanaians as well as passengers who were onboard flight OP157 from Kumasi to Accra.

The plane which was left circling in the skies for close to 1hour pending the approval from the air traffic control tower to land at the Kotoka Airport on March 23, 2021 due to bad weather made a safe descent to dash away the fears of the passengers after the long wait.

Upon disembarking, although traumatized, passengers came together to applaud the pilot for her experience and bravery.

British Airways to proceed with changing airports for London-Accra-Accra flights

British Airways will from October 31, 2021 proceed with its initial plans of switching its operations from the London Heathrow Airport to Gatwick Airport for its London-Accra-London flights.

The initial plan by the airline was to switch airports in March this year, however, the notification given at the beginning of the year met stiff opposition from the Ghanaian Government after it claimed the airline did not give any strong justification for the change. Subsequently, the airline rescinded the plan until this recent development.

After threats by the then Kofi Adda led Aviation Ministry to reciprocate the airline’s action should they not back down, it is unclear what the government’s next line of action would be should the switch take place under the new Transport Minister in-charge of the aviation sector.

Ghana’s national-carrier to be operational soon

Report by Bloomberg has it that Ghana’s strategic partner for the establishment of a national airline, EgyptAir will in the coming months begin the operationalization of the airline which will likely bare the name Air Ghana.

EgyptAir says it will present four Boeing 737-800’s for the commencement of the venture.

EgyptAir outdoors new uniform, seeks to expand in Africa

Inspired by research, EgyptAir on March 23, 2021 outdoored a new uniform for its cabin crew to match up with changing times to enhance its image among customers. The new outfit reflects the image of the airline and the country, Egypt as a whole.

Meanwhile, the airline is also seeking some $300million in a form of government financial assistance to help it with its COVID-19 recovery plans of expanding its operations across Africa.

US Ambassador donates body scanner to KIA

The United States Ambassador to Ghana has donated L3 Provision 2 scanning device together with other explosives and narcotics checking devices to the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) to enhance security at the airport.

The security equipment which were inaugurated within the Terminal 3 building on March 23, 2021 will boost the capacity of KIA in ensuring safety and security at the airport.

RwandAir becomes first airline to vaccinate all staff

RwandAir earlier this week announced that it has vaccinated its entire workforce as part of its effort to position itself as a leader on the continent in the provision of safe and secured services to its customers.

The vaccination program which begun earlier this month has seen all staff of the airline taking their first jab of the COVID-19 vaccine. This has placed the airline in the top spot as the first African airline to do so.

Qatar Airways’ Available Seat Kilometers makes it largest airline

As Qatar Airways expands its operations to connect people globally, information from a global travel data provider, OAG crowns Qatar Airways as the largest airline globally in terms of Available Seat Kilometres (ASK).

ASK is used to calculate the total passenger carrying capacity of an airline in kilometres. This is derived by multiplying the number of used seats per aircraft (s) by the distance flown by the aircraft(s) for each flight.

Passengers on Qatar Airways to have access to digital magazines and newspapers

Qatar Airways as part of plans to cut down on magazine and newspaper waste, says it will from this month allow passengers to have access to over 6000 top magazines and newspapers.

The service which can be accessed by downloading the airline’s in-flight entertainment app, Oryx One which together with a booking reference number will grant a passenger access to selected materials three days before and seven days after scheduled flights. Contents downloaded will continue to stay on a passenger’s mobile device provided the app remains installed.

Authored

Mark Ofosu || Twitter: M__ofosu