New Rival Joins Air Peace, Others on Abuja Route as Airlines Sell Ticket for New Price
- Uganda Airlines will start running extra routes in September to Lusaka, Abuja, and Harare
- The airline CEO claims that Uganda Airlines' expansion strategy depends on the new three routes
- He also disclosed that the airline is considering cargo in addition to passengers
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
Uganda Airlines has announced that it will start operating additional routes to Lusaka, Abuja, and Harare in September.
Source: Getty Images
According to Nile Post report, regular flights to Abuja will begin on September 12, 2024, with its flagship A330-800 aircraft operating Sunday and Thursday flights.
The report said these would complement the present schedule of Sunday, Monday, and Thursday flights to Lagos.
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Similarly, on September 25, 2024, flights to Harare and Lusaka will begin, running four times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
Addressing reporters on Wednesday, July 17, Uganda Airlines CEO, Jennifer Bamuturaki, said the new three routes were crucial to the company's expansion strategy.
Bamuturaki said:
“The entry into these markets is to build an efficient and optimized regional market to feed and finance a more profitable long-haul market for the airline as we grow our fleet and its utilization.”
“The new services also mark the second phase of our network development and attest to our mission to bring affordable air travel to Ugandans for business and leisure. They also lay the groundwork for the final phase, during which we shall expand our footprint to points in Europe and Asia.”
The national airline now flies to 16 destinations, thanks to the addition of the additional flights to Bujumbura, Dar es Salaam, Dubai, Johannesburg, Juba, Kilimanjaro, Kinshasa, Lagos, Mogadishu, Mombasa, Mumbai, Nairobi, and Zanzibar.
Adedayo Olawuyi, the chief commercial officer of Uganda Airlines, stated that the company hopes to break even within the first 18 months of starting the new routes.
“The addition of the three routes should bring us an additional 10% increase to the revenue we are getting today,” Olawuyi said.
He pointed out that they are considering cargo in addition to people, which will ultimately make the routes lucrative for the national carrier.
Legit.ng earlier reported that Ugandan Airlines, which recently commenced direct flights to Nigeria, shared its expansion plans for the next five years.
As part of its growth strategy, the airline has launched new international flights to London Gatwick Airport by the end of 2024.
Airlines increase one-way tickets by N150,000
Legit.ng also previously reported that travellers from Lagos to Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kaduna, Owerri, and Kano are now considering using the road instead of flying due to the ongoing increase in airfares.
The average cost of a one-way travel from Lagos to Abuja is currently N143,000, up from N51,000 sold the previous year, representing a 180.4% price rise.
Similarly, the average cost of a plane ticket on the Abuja to Port Harcourt route is N220,434, which is 389.85% more than it was N45,000 during the same period in 2023.
Proofreading by James Ojo Adakole, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.
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Source: Legit.ng
