The National carrier Uganda Airlines has posted an encouraging gross income of USD 13m after transporting 98,000 passengers in 2021.
The income according to the airline’s acting Chief Executive Officer Jenifer Bamuturaki represents 64% of the set target of USD 20M for the financial 2021/22.
The majority of the passengers were transported on the Airlines ‘s commercial services on the four CRJ-900 aircraft and Airbus A330 aircraft which transported 14,363 passengers on the lucrative Entebbe Dubai route, respectively .
Bamuturaki said Uganda airline carried 165,792, between August 2019 and December 2021 while the Bujumbura, Juba and Mogadishu routes between June and December 2021 posted a performance load of 70%.
“We have seen remarkable growth on these three routes,” Bamuturaki said adding that the results set the stage for 2022.
The Dubai route picked up very fast with the cabin factor averaging 89pc although revenues were depressed by the promotional fairs which have been extended until March to cater for service disruptions. Despite suspensions on the route on two occasions during the past three months, flights continued to operate at 50pc of capacity because the airline had to carry returning passengers who had travelled before the interruptions. Cargo saw a boost over the period with 230 tons, mostly perishables and minerals, carried on the out bound leg while 400tons of merchandise were flown in from Dubai.
Subject to securing regulatory approvals, services to London are slated for March 2022. All required documentation was submitted last December, “and the ball is now really in the UK regulator’s court,” Bamuturaki said.
“Much of the planned expansion can be accommodated within present fleet because by the end of the second year according to our business plan, we were supposed to fly 18 routes regionally and 4 routes internationally. We are currently flying 10 routes regionally and one international route, so we still have adequate flexibility within the fleet,” Bamuturaki added.
