Manufacture of Uganda Airlines’ A330 aircraft by Airbus takes shape (Video)
The manufacture of two Uganda Airlines A330 aircraft by French company, Airbus has taken shape, the Nile Post has learnt.
Uganda Airlines has two of the 337 firm orders from 22 operators by Airbus for A330neos which is a wide-body jetliner and according to a video by the manufacturing company; the aircraft manufacture has taken shape.
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“The second member of the A330neo family, the A330-800 receives joint type certification by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and the Federal Aviation Administration,” Airbus company tweeted on Thursday.
According to a statement by the company the latest development is a big milestone to the new member of the family.
“The aircraft’s certification flight-test campaign was successfully performed by aircraft MSN1888, which completed the program in 370 flight test hours and 132 flights since its first flight in November 2018.”
In response, Uganda Airlines tweeted, “Airbus A330-800neo....joining our fleet later this year.”
The Canadian company made a case for the A330-800neo aircraft as the most efficient, longest-range entry-level wide-body aircraft that also incorporates new Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines, a new 3D-optimised wing and new Sharklets using lighter composite materials which reduce fuel consumption by over 25%.
“In the A330-800, passengers can expect the highest levels of comfort, with the aircraft featuring the award-winning Airspace cabin with larger overhead storage, advanced cabin mood lighting and the latest in-flight entertainment and connectivity. Operationally, the A330neo shares a common pilot type-rating with the larger A350 XWB, which facilitates minimum flight training cost and maximum pilot productivity,” Airbus said in a statement.
https://twitter.com/AirbusPRESS/status/1227953322830843909?s=20
Last year, Uganda revived its national carrier after being down for over 18 years and is expected to get a new A330-800 Airbus plane later this year and another one will follow for long-distance flights.
Speaking at the function of the Uganda Airline’s inaugural flight, President Museveni in a speech given by Rugunda said the national carrier will earn government an extra $450 million that was in the past going to other airlines.
“Each year, Ugandans were donating $450 million to other countries through foreign travels and this is a lot of money,” Museveni said in his speech delivered by Rugunda.
“There has never been a better time to resume commercial flights than now when the number of passengers is increasing every day.
Recently, the Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga asked Ugandans, especially those in the diaspora to stop criticizing the national airline.
“We recently launched Uganda Airlines but don’t join those criticizing the airline. We need your support to market it. The aviation sector is an example of the great opportunities that Ugandans living abroad can invest in,” Kadaga said during the 31st UNAA Convention and Trade Expo in Chicago, Illinois last year.
Currently, Uganda Airlines that commenced commercial operations in August 2019 is operating direct flights from its hub in Entebbe to and from Nairobi, Mombasa, Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro, Juba, Bujumbura and Mogadishu but new routes are soon coming up.
