Kenya aviation breaking news – KQ to get B747-400F to start cargo operations in October

KENYA AIRWAYS GOES CARGO IN A BIG WAY

A source within Kenya Airways has answered in the affirmative a short while ago to the question asked earlier in the afternoon: ‘yes we will be getting a B747-400F in September’. This ends months of speculation over the level of the airline’s entry into the cargo business, which has been booming across the African continent. There was talk about KQ acquiring a B737F to serve the wider region with palletized cargo, and this too seems still on course, although the source would not immediately confirm other information available to this correspondent that in fact two B737F will join the KQ fleet once their main freighter aircraft has been deployed on routes likely to cover Amsterdam and the Middle East.

The commencement of dedicated cargo services, in addition to the underfloor cargo carried on the airline’s fleet of B777 and B767, is expected to boost both revenue as well as profits for ‘The Pride of Africa’ and takes it truly to level par with arch rival Ethiopian Airlines, which has been operating cargo services with a fleet of dedicated aircraft for many years.

The leased B747-400F is expected to be painted in full Kenya Airways livery to fly the Kenyan flag and colours wherever Kenya’s main exports of produce like flowers, fruits, vegetables and chilled fish will take it.

Expect to see the ‘bird’ by end September at the Kenya Airways Embakasi base or follow announcements via www.kenya-airways.com. Happy Landings to aircraft and crew.

 

Seychelles news update – Investment Forum in Jo’burg also serves to promote tourism

SEYCHELLES PROMOTES INVESTMENTS AND TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA

A two day investment forum in Johannesburg, organized by the Seychelles Investment Board in conjunction with the High Commission in Pretoria is ending today, after successfully attracting scores of interested companies and potential investors for projects across the archipelago. Participants reportedly came from the wider South African region, not just South Africa, adding a wider reach for the Seychelles ongoing effort to promote economic opportunities in the processing of fish, real estate and property development investments, the hospitality industry, banking both off and onshore and related services.

Participants were also given a taste of ‘Brand Seychelles’ when the country’s tourism sector used the opportunity also to market travel to the world’s most favourite destination, capturing the imagination of not just the who is who, the rich and famous but also offers holidays of a life time to a growing number of African visitors, who – requiring no Visa and only need to show return tickets, a confirmed hotel booking and funds to sustain themselves, can take advantage of the ‘Affordable Seychelles’ promotions in place since 2010.

RETOSA, SADC and COMESA officials were at hand yesterday at the opening of the forum, signaling also the ‘official’ interest of these organizations in what the Seychelles are doing.

Air Seychelles, the national airline of the Seychelles, flies regularly between Mahe and Johannesburg using their B767 aircraft and, needless to say, facilitated the travel of officials from the islands to South Africa.

 

 

Kenya aviation news update – WHO will survive the hard times

KENYA’S AVIATION SECTOR – WHO NEXT TO FALL TO THE HARD TIMES

Aviation in Kenya is a generally thriving industry with the number of aircraft registered and the daily flights recorded, at the main airports, at Wilson and across the entire country’s airfields and airstrips dwarfing the entire rest of the East African Community. No cause for concern then one might think? Think again. Jet aviation, connecting Nairobi with Malindi, Mombasa, Kisumu and Eldoret, has seen a mighty change take place, when Kenya Airways decided to return to the domestic aviation market per force, re-constituting the ‘shuttle’ to and from Mombasa and returning to both Malindi and Kisumu after runway expansions and repairs had permitted ‘The Pride of Africa’ to do so.

The introduction of new aircraft to the KQ fleet, namely the Embraers 170 and 190 models, has allowed them to fly as many as 10 times between Nairobi and Mombasa a day, and while flights to Malindi are ‘only’ daily at present, more can be added should demand so require, as was the case with Kisumu.

While Kenya Airways was absent from the Kisumu and Malindi routes, and had shown for some time less inclination to claw back market share on the Mombasa route, this changed with the arrival of the Embraers, and it also changed the entire market equation for the privately owned airlines, which had taken advantage of KQ’s ‘slumber’. Jetlink and Fly 540 – the latter has already taken over East African Safari Air Express – found themselves in a sudden ‘to the death’ fight over passengers, had to reduce fares and still maintain their numbers of flights inspite of lower occupancies.

With fuel prices escalating at the same time, margins started to shrink and aviation observers now think that with KQ’s unrelenting presence and pressure on the domestic market, with new aircraft, inventive marketing and a superb frequent flyer loyalty programme, it will only be a matter of time before something, or someone finally gives.

Several reasons can be cited for this development in Kenya’s mainstream aviation.

First there is the need to bring modern aircraft to the fleets, causing aged DC 9’s and F28’s to be phased out, as this is a demand in the market place. These ageing aircraft were cheap to procure though expensive to operate, considering their fuel consumption, an acute issue when the cost of aviation fuel JetA1 soars. Kenya Airways bringing new aircraft on stream almost inevitably compels competitors to do the same and though the present CRJ’s flown by Jetlink and Fly540 are not brand new, they do constitute the newer aircraft the market was looking for. That however required often syndicated funding and with interest rates again on the rise the payments for these newer aircraft are becoming a challenge for such comparably small privately owned airlines.

Secondly, in particular pilots are becoming a real issue for smaller airlines as they are just as much in demand by the national airline – where they have ‘real’ career prospects of eventually migrating to wide bodied planes and to fly further abroad. However, aggressive recruitment by in particular airlines from the Middle East, where a severe pilot shortage is said to be looming, considering the ongoing expansion of their main players like Emirates, Etihad, Qatar, Oman, Air Arabia and Fly Dubai, also plays a major role for qualified pilots in Eastern Africa and it is little surprise that those remaining ‘at home’ have flexed their muscles and successfully re-negotiated their terms and conditions to a point of near financial pain for the smaller airlines, but also for Kenya Airways which only recently had so sign a new deal with their pilots and KALPA. This has eaten deeper into the narrower margins of smaller airlines, making it more difficult to make financial ends meet.

Thirdly, the return of KQ in ‘numbers’ to the Mombasa route and to Malindi and Kisumu has eaten into the client base of smaller jet airlines, and the at times extraordinary special offers to fly with ‘big brother’ Kenya Airways has eroded occupancies of those private airlines, which can only make ends meet with regular high occupancies on one side and efforts to keep their fares ‘up’ – both elements in this equation however no longer hold as pressure on fares has been intense while occupancies have actually reduced, in particular during the long and hard ‘low season’ between after Easter until the end of June.

All of this is taking its toll and the report today from Kenya, that one of these private airlines is being taken to court by another demanding ‘protection’ from asset shifts and cash transfers, which would potentially make it impossible to receive a settlement, should the original suit over some 900.000 US Dollars in dispute be decided in their favour, only is the tip of the iceberg it was learned. ‘Times are tough right now, tourism is just entering its mid season, inflation is running high and the shilling is low which makes procurement of spares and external services like insurance or maintenance a lot more expensive in Shilling terms. So business and leisure travel is not as heavy as we would like, and the elections next year are not helping us either. It is a difficult period for private airlines now. Kenya Airways now even flies twice a day to Juba, where a year ago they did not fly at all. This left the route to us and another Kenyan airline and now there we also have to share the cake like for Mombasa and Kisumu. Our financial resources are more limited, our cash flow is more limited that of KQ and who knows, maybe in a few weeks or months another private airline is going to fold over financial issues’ said on regular source from Nairobi, sounding not exactly convincing though and certainly not as cheerful as usual when passing information, as always under the cover of strict anonymity, to this correspondent.

For now it remains to be seen where the present situation is taking the aviation industry in Kenya, and while the safari airlines report booming business, in particular on their services to and from the Masai Mara where the great migration is presently underway, others are  not so lucky.

Watch this space to read as and when something is going to give and can be reported.

 

Kenya aviation update – A380 for Jo’burg in October but NBO?

EMIRATES A380 FOR KENYA?

‘Kenya is our third biggest market in Africa after South Africa and Nigeria’ was the statement made earlier in the week, when Emirates’ Nairobi office launched the airline’s premium product upgrades now in place in all of the flying giant aircraft. The A380 will first come to Africa in October, when it will feature on the daily flights from Dubai to Johannesburg, replacing smaller aircraft due to continuously strong and rising demand. Durban is also being launched as yet another Emirates destination in South Africa besides Jo’burg and Cape Town.

The Airbus A380 is equipped with a First Class cabin of 14 ‘personal suites’ and most notably offers an inflight shower service, reportedly well received by passengers especially on very long haul flights. An ‘out of this world’ First Class Lounge in Dubai and a range of other ‘goodies’ for passengers in First round up the image Emirates is promoting around the world.

Business Class passengers too will enjoy a new world of inflight comfort on the A 380, as it is equipped with the arguably ‘best’ flat bed seats on the market, and catering in both F and C is rumoured to be competing with another ‘5-Star’ airline for the top honours.

Yet, the ongoing renovations and expansion at JKIA Nairobi, and the recent problems with multiple power outages are not conducive for an A 380 operation just yet, although it is apparently planned to have a ‘double decker’ airbridge installed at one of the end gates of the terminal to facilitate docking of the giant airliner without problems.

So keep watching this space for the most up to date news from the Eastern African and Indian Ocean aviation scenes to learn, if or when the A 380 will be slated for Nairobi. Time will tell!

 

Seychelles news update – Parliament accepts court ruling, dissolves itself again

PARLIAMENT DISSOLVES ITSELF AGAIN – WITH DUE NOTICE

Following the ruling of the Constitutional Court, that they vote for the dissolution of parliament was not valid as the prescribed notice was not given in accordance within the law and the regulations governing such a vote, the Speaker of the Seychelles parliaments promptly accepted the ruling and instead of appealing it to the Supreme Court immediately notified assembly members of the situation, called for another vote with the notice duly following the requirements this time, and parliament then once again voted to dissolve itself, paving the way for a general election within 90 days.

The Speaker also affirmed his position, that the ‘sacking’ of an opposition member, who voted with the ruling party, was under court review and as such ‘pending and not final’ allowing the Hon. Jane Carpin to again give Party Lepep the decisive vote.

Opposition leaders, reeling from the development, vowed to take the matter again to court but this time round have little chance to success, according to politically astute sources from Victoria, and are expected to face the wrath of their voters in the upcoming polls, when they will be asked why the present, and outgoing SNP party leadership abdicated their duties by being absent from parliament and playing shenanigans over the announcement of the presidential election outcome, which was broadly validated by observers from SADC, the Commonwealth and incidentally witnesses by this correspondent while on assignment in the Seychelles.

Tourism sources meanwhile dismissed any suggestions that these events of recent days would have any impact on the tourism industry or the present record arrivals, as only a few days ago the 100.000 visitor was greeted by the STB top brass comprising the CEO and Deputy CEO at the Mahe International Airport. ‘Our politics have mellowed down a lot and unlike in the past, we Seychellois have come to see that the President means business, means what he said in his election campaign that he will work for all, including those who voted against him. We are now an open society with lots of economic opportunities for our citizens and the opposition has failed to appreciate that. In fact we are happy that the opposition leader will step down and make way for new blood and a new vision, which can then start to help build a prosperous Seychelles nation’ said a regular commentator from Mahe.

For now it is ‘watch this space’ as to the announcement of the election campaign period and the elections days to be gazetted very soon.

 

East Africa news – It is officially a FAMINE now

IT IS OFFICIALLY A FAMINE NOW

At least 11 million people in the Horn of Africa and wider Eastern African region are now said to be suffering from a famine, which has been described as the worst in decades, aggravated by the civil war in Somalia and the hostilities and tension between Eritrea and Ethiopia.

A refugee camp in North Eastern Kenya has become the focus of the world media, as over 400.000 mainly Somali women, children and elderly people have streamed across the desert like landscapes to find a drink and a mouthful to eat in a facility build for initially only 70.000 people.

More arrivals are recorded daily and UN agencies and NGO’s are struggling to keep up with the fast rate of newcomers and their medical and nutritional needs.

Figures from in particular Al Shabab controlled areas of Somalia paint a grim picture of wide spread starvation, hunger and death with the Islamic fanatics reportedly calling it an ‘Act of God’ inflicted on Somalia as ‘punishment’ – exposing them as the cruel and inconsiderate radicals and terrorists they are, not giving a damn about the welfare of Somalia’s population and using famine as another weapon to establish their ‘kingdom come nightmare state’.

The UN is now seeking urgent intervention and contributions by member countries to avail food aid, medical aid and other logistical support, but the response is slow considering the war like scenario awaiting aid agency personnel, who can expect to be abducted and held hostage by Al Shabab for political considerations and to extort ‘a share’ of the aid channeled to the needy to themselves and their cronies.

The situation lends also new impetus to the call by Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to be serious about combating the Islamic militias and Al Qaida affiliates hiding out in Somalia, as no reconstruction nor wide scale aid to the suffering populations can happen before these elements have been defeated and driven out of Somalia. But the African Union, under which mandate mainly Ugandan and Burundian troops are stationed in Somalia to keep the transitional federal government in place until free and fair elections can be organized, is loath to engage in an outright combat mission while the UN too has been delaying a decision on a full sea and air embargo to prevent the flow of weapons into Somalia and halt the arrival of ever more militants from across the Arab and Islamic world.

Food crisis calls have also emerged from within Kenya, Ethiopia, Northern Uganda and even the Sudan, where rains have either failed or been insufficient to make up from the devastating 2007-2009 drought the region suffered from and regional governments, already struggling with devaluation, inflationary pressures and fuel prices still rising are considered ill equipped to deal with the added demands on their own.

The added component is the re-emerging conflict between pastoralists and national park managers, as the former may once again start driving their cattle and goat herds into the parks in search of pasture and water with the park managers resisting so that wildlife habitat, also suffering from drought, can be protected and tourism continue to bring money into coffers.

Governments though may initially turn a blind eye on these re-emerging conflicts, more so as people have votes and animals do not, and with Kenya in particular gearing up for elections to be held in late 2012, crucial questions which need answers now concerning famine, drought, starvation combined with inflation and falling currency values will be a long way coming. But will sticking the head in the sand a la ostrich really make the problems go away or will the much maligned Western development partners and donors have to step in once again to come to the rescue of the African people where their own governments choose politicking over doing the right thing.

Time will tell, so watch this space. 

 

 

Mauritius tourism news – EU helps to finance new tourism strategic plan

EU CO-FINANCES TOURISM PLANNING FOR MAURITIUS

Clearly stung deep by the success of fellow ‘vanilla island’ Seychelles, which has over the past two and a half years re-positioned itself as THE Indian Ocean island destination of choice and became the darling of the global media, Mauritius is now embarking on clawing her own position back with a new 5 year tourism strategic plan currently under development.

News from a source in Mauritius overnight confirmed that a consultant has been appointed and that the European Union had already released about 35.000 Euros towards the cost of the strategic plan production, allowing it to be fast tracked. The Minister for Tourism apparently also responded to questions asked by a member of parliament in this regard and confirmed that work had started to find ways and means to deal with the changing market conditions since the 2007/8 global financial and economic crisis and the more recent economic wobbles as a result of the sharp rise in crude oil prices and the financial fallout of the Euro zone crisis. Tourism sources are said to be anxious to see a new focus to be introduced in how the island markets itself abroad and how it is being perceived in the media and portrayed in relevant publications read by potential travelers to Mauritius. With a number of new hotels and resorts now available, average occupancies are giving the operators cause for concern, which recently resulted in demands to loosen the tight strings for airlines wanting to fly more often to Mauritius and reducing protection for the national carrier Air Mauritius. Focus on existing markets, to reclaim market share was also mentioned alongside the need to open up new markets outside of Europe with one source in particular again pointing to the Seychelles and their policy of ‘No Visa’ and ‘Open Skies’ which has hugely benefitted them and resulted in new arrival records being set month after month.

Adds this correspondent in closing: ‘it is never too late to do the right thing and there is  no shame in absorbing lessons learned by others’.

 

Kenya conservation news – BURN IVORY BURN

LET ACTION FOLLOW THE GOOD WORDS SPOKEN AT THE IVORY BURNING

Burn Ivory Burn was the motto yesterday afternoon at the Kenya Wildlife Service’ Manyani Training Centre in Tsavo National Park, where the conservation who is who from Eastern Africa was joined by President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya, a number of his ministers and senior government officials and ministers from across the region who had come to witness the event.

The burning of several tons of ivory, confiscated a decade ago in Singapore and eventually brought to Kenya by the Lusaka Agreement Task Force, again put Kenya on the forefront of the African fight back against poaching like it did 30 years ago already, when in a groundbreaking event a huge pile of ivory was also set alight at the KWS headquarters in Nairobi at the time by President Daniel arap Moi.

Then as now, Kenya showed open defiance against the crime of poaching but also against constant efforts by other signatories of the Lusaka Agreement, to obtain ‘exemptions’ and sell ‘surplus stocks’ of mostly blood ivory to the open market, something which in retrospect is now accepted as a major contributing cause to increase in poaching just as soon as the flood gates had opened.

Like in the war on drugs, or in the war on terror, let there be no ifs and buts when it comes to poaching and how to fight back as national interests and national security is gravely affected by well armed, often militia like poaching gangs roaming the continent’s wildlife reserves, national parks and conservancies. Loss of crucial game populations, rhinos being high on the agenda next to elephant, sooner or later results in a drop in tourists visiting the affected areas and the subsequent loss of foreign exchange, loss of jobs and divesting of assets by foreign investors then constitutes a direct challenge to the governments of such countries suffering from commercial scale poaching.

First, pending legislative amendments across Eastern Africa and beyond in Southern, Central and West Africa, in regard of stiffer sentences with not less than 10 years in prison and crippling fines added to it, have to be fast tracked to finally serve as a deterrent to those financing poaching, doing the poaching and found engaged in the trading and processing of blood ivory, rhino horn and other prohibited wildlife products. Bail, if at all, must be so costly for those accused that it would ruin them financially if they try to jump bail and flee and should be denied altogether if there is any suspicion that the culprits would continue to poach while out awaiting trial. The component ‘crime of sabotaging the national economies’ too should be added, as tourism is a key sector in the East African economies and poaching is a clear and present danger to the success of tourism. Meanwhile law enforcement should be allowed much harsher rules of engagement when dealing with poachers in the field.

Secondly, China and a few other notorious countries in the Far and South East must be told in no uncertain terms that they have to strengthen their own legislation to completely prohibit importation, possession and processing of ivory, rhino horn and other wildlife products like bones from tigers and lions, trophies and skins. There is the greater need of action in fact, as these countries citizens have shown not only an unprecedented greed and lust for ivory and rhino horn powder but have done so in total disregard of the damage they do to Africa’s great wildlife heritage.

Words from law enforcement official in Eastern Africa speak of about 90 percent of the arrests made at airports and sea ports over smuggling of blood ivory and other contraband are linked directly to Chinese citizens being involved, a damning indictment for China and their inability or unwillingness to tackle this problem hand in hand with their professed ‘friends’ in Africa. Here ‘guilt by standing by and doing nothing’ comes to mind unless there is a combined strategy at work, to siphon out Africa’s natural resources of minerals and oil as already evident while deliberately turning a blind eye on the destruction of our continent’s wildlife and their own citizens constant attempt to smuggle contraband out of Africa.

But the story does not end there. As mentioned earlier, notably Tanzania and Zambia had applied at the last CITES gathering in early 2010 in Doha to be given permission to sell ivory, and Tanzania then, being denied the official sanction, tried to circumvent the prohibition order by attempting to auction off ivory confiscated at the main airport in Dar es Salaam via the customs and excise department. They were claiming at the time that only ‘raw’ ivory was affected by the CITES Convention while processed or semi processed ivory could still be sold.

This violation of spirit – sadly very much in line with other actions by the Tanzanian government in recent months concerning conservation and environmental issues – has dented Tanzania’s reputation abroad and left officials spitting mad, accusing neighbours to be hostile, conservationists and environmentalists to be mad and last week calling UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee an ‘inconsequential entity’.

Zambia, host of the Lusaka Agreement and the CITES Secretariat, seems to have had second thoughts on applying afresh for permission to sell of ivory stocks at the next CITES Convention, in the face of growing international pressure and as the country attempts to rebrand and relaunch the tourism industry as a major economic sector to create jobs and earn foreign exchange.

So while Kenya, East Africa and the world at large – at least officially and for sure by the conservation fraternity – applauds President Mwai Kibaki’s action yesterday, that can only be the start of things to come. ACTION is what is now needed, beyond the good words spoken, immediate action and visible action or else, this too will go into the history books as just another ‘footnote’ on the way to losing Africa’s heritage to a new breed of Eastern invaders and neo-colonialists.