The task of rebuilding our pride as Ugandans has been re awakened with the revival of Uganda airlines. President Museveni and First Lady Janet Museveni on April 23 led Ugandans to receive the first two of the CRJ900 Bombardier planes that will form part of the fleet for the revived Uganda Airlines at Entebbe Airport.
Ugandans are already giving due credit to the midwife who delivered the baby and have welcomed the new baby.
Eighteen years ago, Uganda Airlines was liquidated after enduring a number of technical and economic challenges such as constant breakdown of the aircraft, high maintenance and fuel costs. Suffice to say the airline was dead and buried.
President Museveni who says he was among the undertakers at the burial of the old airlines is very optimistic with the revived airline and asserts its clientele is already spelt out.
“Why do I think the new baby will survive? There are four clientele constituencies that will support this business, Ugandans in the Diaspora, families of Asians of Ugandan descent expelled by Idi Amin, our business people who travel a lot and the tourists”, he optimistically says.
Pushing Towards a Middle Income Status Economy
The attainment of the middle income status means more air travel and the need for more aircrafts. Uganda’s potential market size is very wide and supposing half the population as forecast attains this status, potentially 15 Million people will be flying by the next decade.
President Museveni affirms that indeed, the revival of Uganda Airlines as a national carrier is an affirmation that Uganda is pushing towards attaining middle income status.
“The airline should help us push towards attaining middle income status. Ugandans spend $400m annually on air travel. Some of this money will now come to our airline,” he says.”
Its revival is not a gamble to consolidate political support but a deliberate engagement well thought over that can perfectly connect with Uganda’s development agenda.
Sustainability Formulated in the National Development Plan for 2014/15, the airline was highlighted as one of the expensive ventures to undertake, but necessary to drive Uganda towards its long-term development goals.
Uganda Airlines should now focus on what role and input it has to the economy than solely focusing on its financial operations.
To enhance Uganda’s economic competitiveness, the government knows it must work to reduce the cost of air transport and ease connectivity.
This may include, but not limited to, the expansion and modernization of the Entebbe International Airport as the only way to provide a tangible chance for the national carrier to shrive hence avert the hiccups that led to its liquidation.
The handling services of Uganda Airlines should be handled with care, well articulated in an accountable and credible transparent manner to eventually rule out possibilities of mismanagement that could take it back to the dogs.
Strategic Attempts to Revive the Airline
There have been numerous unsuccessful attempts to establish a local based airline by Africa One, East African Airlines, Alliance Air, Victoria International Airlines and Air Uganda among others.
The airlines closed down due to under-capitalization, use of vintage aircraft, lack of route rights, poor management, hostile political interference and a general lack of appreciation of value addition to the airline.
The Prospects
The new airline for the meantime will cover the East African region where East Africans are already enjoying free travel and trade which is good enough. As it takes baby steps and gets absorbed in the industry, the challenges notwithstanding, we will see more crafts being designed to cater for the increasing numbers within and beyond the region. America has embraced this before and its success has encouraged the procurement of many more crafts with expansive capacities for economic transformation.
Aside from the clientele spelt out by President Museveni, Uganda’s over 40 million people will offer a good customer base given the land locked nature of our country. Uganda’s potential market size is very wide and supposing half the population as forecast attains this status, potentially 15 Million people will be flying by the next decade.
Passenger growth at Entebbe Airport will likely grow up to 11 percent annually. Based on flight statistics collected over the last 6 years, out of the 1.5 million passengers in 2014, 60% were Ugandans. More than 50,000 metric tons of cargos have been processed with COMESA, Europe, and Middle East & Asia as the top cargo destinations. The economy will continue to grow and thus economically empower more citizens to fly and use air to export their produce.
Uganda has exploited the vast potential to further develop its tourism, which presently accounts for approximately 7.4 percent of total employment. As a preferred destination for adventure, tourists flock in to appreciate Uganda’s beauty, wildlife, fauna and flora, gorilla tracking, water rafting and mountain trekking.
Having been ranked among the best destination points, the national carrier will no doubt stimulate growth of air travel and all the employment opportunities that come along.
Uganda’s Aviation History
The history of aviation in Uganda starts in 1943, the year that marked the formation of the East African Airways which had previously been called Wilson Airways. East African Airways unfortunately collapsed with the imposition of the Economic embargo in 1975/6 and this did not help the take-off of the Uganda Airlines.
Uganda Airlines, with a fleet of 15 aircrafts then, linking Uganda to the whole of Africa, Europe and Middle East would later fail to cope with the inevitable financial difficulties that eventually led to its liquidation.
Uganda Airlines has many lessons to pick from Uganda’s past aviation experience, as well as lessons from all airlines globally. Its revival is a step in the right direction which every Ugandan as a shareholder, regardless of their political, religious or cultural affiliation, must embrace and offer their undivided support.
