Air Tanzania Burundi-Dar Route Re-launched

After suspending the route for nearly 20 years, Air Tanzania has now announced that it will resume flights to Burundi, Mwanza and introduce a new service to Mbeya.

The airline will run its Dar Es Salaam – Bujumbura route on three days each week and will provide a direct service to Bujumbura, Burundi instead of requiring passengers to go through Nairobi.

The route is expected to facilitate stronger relations between the two countries as well as new opportunities for Tanzanian business.

According to The Observatory of Economic Complexity most recent data, in 2010 Tanzania exported 3,097,460 USD worth of goods to Burundi, while imports from the country were valued at 2,110,852 USD.

In addition to the resuming Burundi route, Air Tanzania are also re-launching a route to Mwanza, located in north-western Tanzania and introducing a new service to Mbeya, southwest Tanzania.

The news comes a month after Air Tanzania announced that Al Hayat Development and Investment, an Oman consortium, had agreed to invest over 100 million USD into the airline.

Referring to the deal, Air Tanzania Acting CEO Milton Lazaro noted that the substantial investment would dramatically strengthen the position of the airline.

Air Tanzania now intends to increase its fleet size to a total of 11 aircraft within the next five years.

The airline started operating in 1977 following the collapse of East African Airways.

In 2002 Air Tanzania was privatized with South African Airways (SAA) purchasing a 49% stake.

Three years later the company recorded a pre-tax loss of Tsh7.7billion due to a lack of investment into the expansion of its network.

In 2006 the Tanzanian Government terminated its partnership with SAA by buying back its 49% stake.