Kenya Airways launches Cargo aircraft

May 14, 2013

Trade volumes at Entebbe International Airport are set to surge further after Kenya airways launched its first fully owned cargo plane last week.

By Billy Rwothungeyo
 
Trade volumes at Entebbe International Airport are set to surge further after Kenya airways launched its first fully owned cargo plane last week.
 
“Cargo exports at Entebbe have been growing over the last decade. CAA statistics show that cargo traffic in and out of Entebbe International Airport grew from 26,014 tonnes in 1999 to 63,719 tonnes in 2007,” said Civil Aviation Authority managing director, Mr Rama Makuza said at the launch.
 
The Boeing B737-300 freighter jet is the first of the four passenger aircraft which were identified for conversion into freighters by the airline in October 2012.
 
The Freighter with a payload capacity of up to 20 metric tonnes will be deployed on regional African routes, de-feeding cargo from our network and partner networks through our hub Nairobi.
 
The converted freighter will operate in Eastern, Central, and Southern Africa. The planned destinations include: Juba, Luanda, Bangui, Douala, Yaoundé, Kigali, Entebbe, Dar-es-Salaam, Kinshasa and Bujumbura amongst others.
 
“Uganda trades more with her neighbours mainly in the EAC and COMESA regional blocs. As airlines, you need to take keen interest in these regional destinations, where you should possibly provide cargo freighters with bigger capacities to carry the business community’s required tonnage. As a member of COMESA Free Trade Area and EAC , Uganda needs Kenya Airways cargo services to tap into the growing trade volumes,” Uganda Manufacturers Association (UMA) executive director, Sebaggala Mustafa Kigozi.
 
 
 
 

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