Fastjet says its Zambian subsidiary, Fastjet Zambia has secured its Air Services Licence (ASL) from the country’s government. The carrier is now focused on continuing the submission of the necessary documents and manuals to complete the application process for an Air Operators Certificate (AOC), which will then allow the commencement of domestic and international operations. Ceo, Ed Winter, said: “We have been working tirelessly to roll out the fastjet model across the region and obtaining the ASP in Zambia is a really positive step forward. We still have to obtain the full AOC but this vote of confidence from the authorities is a major step along that road.
Zambia will be fastjet’s second base, from which it plans to operate low-cost flights to various destinations in East and Southern Africa. In addition, the airline has received permission from the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority to operate flights from Uganda to Johannesburg, Juba, Nairobi, and Kigali under Fifth Freedom rights using Tanzanian-based aircraft. Once the authorities in the relevant countries provide their approvals, fastjet Tanzania will be able to offer flights linking Entebbe with these destinations.
Fastjet commenced operations from Dar es Salaam to Entebbe on September 16 and added additional flights in October. The company has signed an agreement to enable Tanzanian participation in the ownership of fastjet Airlines Limited, its Tanzanian-based airline, bringing the total Tanzanian legal and beneficial ownership of fastjet Tanzania to 51%. This meant fastjet Tanzania would benefit from entry into new markets and have greater access to more international African destinations through the various bilateral air service agreements, the airline said in a statement.
