RwandAir has announced all its flights to three key cities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been suspended with immediate effect.

According to RwandAir, the “Suspension of flights to the Democratic Republic of Congo,” follows the decision by the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo to suspend RwandAir flights.

“RwandAir has decided to cancel all flights to Kinshasha, Lubumbashi and Goma with Immediate effect,” reads the statement from RwandAir issued Saturday on their Twitter platform.

In September 2021, RwandAir after its recovery from the pandemic added additional routes to the DRC from September.

The Rwandan flag carrier launched new twice-weekly services to both Lubumbashi, the DRC’s mining capital, and Goma – the capital of North Kivu province, on the shore of Lake Kivu to kick off on 15 October 2021.

Customers will be able to book directly through Rwanda and fly on the airline’s regional Bombardier CRJ Series in both Economy and Business Class operating to Goma.

It was believed these new routes would be extremely popular with customers and increase both diplomatic and commercial links between the DRC and Rwanda.

RwandAir’s first destination in DRC was Kinshasa in April 2019, with these two new services tripling available capacity to the country.

Lubumbashi is the second-largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and represents the main industrial centre for the mining district of southeastern Congo.

It acts as a hub for high volumes of the country’s largest mining companies, making it a hot spot for business travellers and is also home to the famous Simba Brewery, where the world-renowned Tembo beer is produced.

Goma lies a few miles south of the active Nyiragongo Volcano, close to the border with Rwanda, on the shore of Lake Kivu, the largest lava in the world. 

The city is a great gateway to nearby wildlife, including Virunga National Park.