Arusha — WHILE Kenya is still dilly dallying with
the issue of allowing Tanzania’s cheapest airline to fly to Nairobi,
Fastjet has just announced its new route linking Kilimanjaro
International Airport to Uganda’s Entebbe terminal.
The airline has also been generous enough in extending its flights to Mwanza.
Announcing the new schedule in Arusha at the weekend, the Fastjet
Manager in charge of the East African Region, Mr Jimmy Kibati, said that
direct flights between KIA and Entebbe were crucial.
The flights come in the backdrop of increasing trading activities
between the Northern Tanzanian urban centres, Arusha City and Moshi
Municipality with the Ugandan capital of Kampala.
Fastjet, which has become a darling airline among budget conscious
travellers, will be trailblazing across Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Mwanza and
Kampala three times a week using its Airbus A319 aircraft as from March
31.
The flights are expected to be taking off at 8.55 am in the Morning.
Previously passengers flying to Kampala used to connect two flights from
KIA via Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi using code
shared Precision Air and Kenya Airways.
From Entebbe, Fastjet will be making a return
journey to Kilimanjaro from 10.55am and this is expected to taxi at KIA
by 12.20pm in the afternoon.
The flights are planned to run on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at pocket friendly 95,000/- per fare.
In yet another development, there will be new Fastjet flights set to
be linking Kilimanjaro Airport with Mwanza in the Lake Zone starting
from 12.20 pm at KIA going to Mwanza where it is to land at about 3.15
pm in the evening.
The flight fare between Kilimanjaro and Mwanza stands at 35,000/-.
The fare rate poses a threat to passenger bus operators who are charging
the same, or higher for their “rickety ground based public transport.”
The Fastjet Manager explained that his company already has great
presence in both Uganda and Tanzania and thus it only remained for the
two countries to be linked together for maximum effect and efficiency.
The airline already serves domestic flights between Dar es Salaam,
Mbeya, Kilimanjaro and Mwanza as well as International voyages linking
Dar es Salaam to Harare in Zimbabwe, Lusaka in Zambia, Johannesburg in
South Africa, and now Entebbe in Uganda, with a pending application to
fly to Nairobi, Kenya.
By Yasinta Amos
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