Air Tanzania gets 787-8 – but where will it fly? Mumbai, London and Guangzhou better options

A great source of national pride. Earlier this month, Air Tanzania welcomed its 787-8 to its fleet – with half of the country it seems! The arrival of the big carrier marks the next step in the reconstruction of the aircraft carrier which, at its inception, included the purchase of the 787-8, three Q400s and two A220-300s.

Air Tanzania can certainly be ranked among the smallest carriers in Africa. It operates a small fleet, with domestic and regional operations serviced by its three Q400s, a fleet that was recently joined by the carrier's latest acquisition – a 787-8. Two A220-300s (renamed Airbus name for the Bombardier CS300) are also on order and are expected to be delivered at the same time as widebody aircraft, but have not yet been delivered to Africa. A Q300 also remains in the carrier's books, but according to the ch-aviation fleet database, the aircraft is currently "inactive".

The carrier was established in 1977 following the dissolution of East African Airways. . Air Tanzania has gone through a number of changes in its structure and ownership as a result of the government's efforts to ensure that the country has a strong national airline. The airline was partially privatized in 2002, when the local government reduced its stake to 51% and entered into a partnership with South African Airways (SAA). The arrangement ended in 2006 when the government bought out SAA's stake. The final step in the airline's redesigned strategy, which is coming to an end, has been the ordering of the new, small but perfectly formed fleet.

According to the OAG's schedule data for July 19, the airline operates 136 weekly frequencies. Dar es Salaam, the largest city in Tanzania, is the largest air base in the country, with 39% of its weekly seats, ahead of its second airport in Mwanza (17%), located on Lake Victoria in the north of the country. The national carrier is only the fourth airline (4,028 seats) in Dar es Salaam, offering fewer seats than Precision Air (8,180), fastjet (6,448) and Ethiopian Airlines (4,250). This position may well change as a result of the arrival of Air Tanzania's Boeing aircraft to its fleet

Pbadengers traveling to Mwanza or Kilimanjaro for domestic service Air Tanzania back and forth will have a nice surprise in August, a flight on a 787-8. Does this mean that by September, he expects to fly long distances? At the top of the list with Mumbai are London and Guangzhou.

Where to steal his 787?

With its improved fleet, Air Tanzania is apparently on the cusp of a network expansion program, which according to the airline's website include destinations in Africa, Europe, Asia and the United States. Indeed, the carrier is promoting flights to Mumbai on its home page (see announcement below), but no start date has been advanced. Clearly having a 787-8 sitting around doing nothing is expensive, so the airline currently uses it on domestic roads in Mwanza and Kilimanjaro. The badysis of the OAG traffic badyzer connection data for Dar es Salaam between June 2017 and May 2018 at destinations of more than 4,500 kilometers indicates that the vast majority of pbadengers in transit are heading towards Europe (highlighted in light green), followed by Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia. Drilling up to the airport level reveals the following graph, which confirms the regional preference of travelers who currently have to use intersections to get to their respective final destinations. A total of 919 airports were directly or indirectly flown from Dar es Salaam

Source: OAG Traffic Analyzer.

Given the above, it is understandable that the carrier is touting a Mumbai connection. It is currently the # 2 traffic connection destination. Next step for Air Tanzania in terms of long haul routes could be a service to London, and maybe then to Guangzhou, World Routes this year's hosts. As expected, New York is the first American destination demanded by Tanzanian travelers, in 20th position

Dubai dominates the hoovering hub

The main connecting airport is Dubai, currently controlling 20% ​​of the transit traffic of Dar es Salaam, in front of Addis Ababa (15%) and Istanbul Atatürk (12%). The other hubs MEB3 (Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha) and another FLAPI (Frankfurt, London Heathrow, Amsterdam Paris CDG and Atatürk) are just behind, with the Dutch airport in fourth position (9 , 1%), the capital of the United Arab Emirates in fifth (7.5%) and the Qatar Airways base in sixth (7.0%).

] other routes r On August 26, the African carrier will begin service four times a week from Dar es Salaam to Entebbe (via Kilimanjaro), an area it last served in March 2009. On the same day, it will also begin a Operation three times a week in Bujumbura (via Kilimanjaro), an itinerary that he flew over for the last time 16 years ago. The two pairs of cities will be driven by his Q400 workhorses. Whenever Air Tanzania will unveil its long distance aspirations with its 787-8 factory, you'll hear it here first!

Soon, … but when? The planned service of Air Tanzania in Mumbai is not for sale on its website or recorded in the OAG program data, but it is clear that the airline is already promoting it without a launch date. For now, the African carrier uses its only long-distance kit for domestic services to Mwanza and Kilimanjaro.