Uganda’s national carrier, Uganda Airlines, on Tuesday, re-launched its commercial flights with the first one heading to Nairobi, Kenya. The national carrier had ceased operation in 2001 after liquidation.
The inaugural flight departed from Entebbe Airport to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) Nairobi, reported Xinhua Net. The flight had a number of government officials on board including Uganda’s Junior Minister for Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Godfrey Kiwanda Ssubi.
Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, who represented President Yoweri Museveni, described the occasion as joyous and historic.
“Each year, Ugandans were donating 450 million U.S. dollars to other countries through foreign travel. Besides, there was a lot of inconvenience to traveling Ugandans by not having direct flights and even being charged discriminatively airfares,” Museveni said in his speech read by Rugunda.
The airline will first fly to seven destinations in the region including Nairobi (Kenya), Mogadishu (Somalia), Juba (South Sudan) and Dar es Salaam (Tanzania); and then to Mombasa (Kenya), Kilimanjaro (Tanzania) and Bujumbura (Burundi).
“Uganda plays a critical role in the geopolitical and economic stability of East Africa as a region and as a nation, we are strategically placed to serve our neighbors,” Museveni said. “There has never been a better time to commence commercial operations than now when passenger traffic is growing given the increasing demand for Uganda tourism, business opportunities and a peaceful environment created by the NRM Government.”
The country received two new CRJ900 Bombardier aircraft in April this year, with two more expected next month. The country also expects two airbuses in 2020.
