ATCL A223 Due DAR Today

[Phone Wind]

Air Tanzania’s first A220-300 is due to arrive in Dar today. It departed Montreal on Friday and flew to the Portuguese island of Santa Maria, whence yesterday it flew to Accra.
This will be the first of the type to operate commercially in Africa and the second aircraft is expected very soon. The aircraft are expected to operate regional flights initially to Johannesburg and Harare, with Nairobi following soon. This should provide the feeder flights they need to start Dreamliner routes to China and India in the new year.
They are also expected to operate some internal routes to Mwanza, Mbeya and Kilimanjaro to make up for the shortfall caused by the grounding of Fastjet Tanzania.

Meanwhile, Fastjet Tanzania’s new local management have announced that they hope to be leasing a number of B735s soon in an effort to restore their AOC and restart flights in Tanzania. It remains to be seen if the new management will have better fortune with the TCAA than the old did!

[GordonR_Cape]

This new aircraft has become embroiled in (another) financial dispute: Edited source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tanzania-south-africa-aviation/south-african-court-impounds-tanzanian-plane-in-compensation-case-lawyer-idUSKCN1VE0BJ

South African authorities impounded an Airbus 220-300 aircraft leased by Tanzania’s national flag carrier following a court application by a retired farmer who is owed compensation by the Tanzanian government, the farmer’s lawyer said.

The plane had been scheduled to fly from the Oliver Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, South Africa, to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on Friday, but was seized on an order issued by the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg, Tanzania’s transport ministry said in a statement on Friday.

Roger Wakefield, of Werksmans Attorneys, said his client, an elderly farmer who asked not to be named, was owed $33 million, including interest, in compensation from the Tanzanian government after his land in the country was expropriated several decades ago. The farmer was subsequently awarded the compensation in an arbitration, he said. Wakefield said the only way Tanzania could secure the release of the plane was if it put up security or paid the debt.

Same story on BBC, and other sources.

[caiman27]

I see that the impounded aircraft is now back in service, but none of the fleet are going anywhere near Johannesburg again.

[EDDNHopper]

Apparently TC flights DAR-JNB are still suspended. Officially on the grounds of "they could not fly passengers into an area ridden with chaos and violence" The Citizen TZ (https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/news/Suspense-over-Air-Tanzania-s-resumption-of-flights-t/1840340-5280274-2gn3s5z/index.html)
Errmmm... :rolleyes:
Irrespective of this "explanation", does anyone know how they are handlingc current bookings? I have a few colleagues booked on a JNB flight next week and so far no word from Air Tz... Also, probably not the best of marketing strategies they could come up with for their new routes, hm? :hmm:

[GordonR_Cape]

No idea of their current flight schedules, but google thinks I need to know that they have ordered two more A220 models: https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/news/Tanzania-signs-contract-to-buy-two-new-Airbus-planes/1840340-5279572-vnf3voz/index.html

[4runner]

Just saw a second 787 on the Everett assembly line. I couldn’t believe it.

[howard meredith]

I think we need East African Airways Corp Mark to come along and take over KQ/TC/QU?