One of the fastest growing international carriers in the world, Emirates airlines, has announced that it will add more than 1,400 seats a week on its Dar es Salaam – Dubai route by introducing a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft from February 1, 2013.
The larger Boeing 777-300ER will replaced the Airbus 340-500 which was currently deployed on one of Dar es Salaam’ daily flight, giving 40 percent boost to seat capacity and opening up the Tanzanian capital for investment and business opportunities.
The new aircraft has 360 seats in a three-class configuration offering eight luxurious First Class suits, 42 seats in Business Class and generous space for 310 passengers in Economy Class. Aside this, the operation of the new aircraft will also have a positive impact on Tanzania’s import and export industry.
The Boeing 777-300ER has a capacity of up to 46 tonnes, which means businesses will benefit from an additional 112 tonnes of weekly capacity on the route. Commodities carried include spare parts, telecommunications, mining equipment, machinery flowers, meat and fish.
Emirates SkyCargo, using the Airbus 340-500, had a belly-hold capacity of 30 tonnes in both directions.
Speaking on the expansion plan, Emirates Senior Vice President Commercial Operations for Africa, Jean Luc Grillet said, “Dar es Salaam is one of East Africa’s most popular destinations and the introduction of the new Boeing 777 is a direct response to increasing passenger demand on this route.”
She added that “Emirates carried 148,000 passengers on flights to and from Dar es Salaam in 2012. With the new Boeing 777 service we expect this to noticeably grow as our customers continue to explore the opportunities Emirates’ global network has to offer.”
Meanwhile, British Airways has decided to close shop on its thrice-weekly service from London to Dar es Salaam from March 31 after about four decades of service to Tanzania.
The airline says “The flights are being suspended because they don’t make a profitable contribution to our business.”
“Dar es Salaam was not performing well from a commercial perspective so we have taken the decision to suspend the route.”
The airline said customers booked to fly with British Airways after 31 March would be offered a full refund or could alternatively be re-booked onto flights to/from Nairobi, Entebbe or Lusaka.
Customers booked to fly with British Airways after 31 March would be offered a full refund or could alternatively be re-booked onto flights to/from Nairobi, Entebbe or Lusaka, the airline said.
Several stakeholders and economic analysts interviewed in Dar es Salaam have said that the move will likely lead to a loss of revenue and other social benefits.
