This week, we bring you a recap on the Top Ten (10) most important things in Uganda’s Tourism, the world of Aviation and Travel that have made rounds especially in this COVID-19 Era. As always, we will be giving you highlights that have made News rounds all through from start of the week till the End. Below are the highlights in precision.
01. A List of Airports Offering COVID-19 Testing Onsite for Travelers
With the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test for Covid-19 continuing to be a pre requisite prior any air travel, travelers have been faced with difficulties especially in acquiring timely test results.
However, the good news is that some airports and airlines have started their own COVID-19 testing operations as a way to get passengers back in the skies and improve customer confidence especially as holiday travel sets in.
When Emirates SkyCargo’s first freighter flight took off from Guadalajara, Mexico, on the 2nd of October, the cargo hold contained several tonnes of avocadoes and other vegetables grown and harvested in Mexico and destined for supermarket shelves in Europe and the Middle East.
In Kenya, Emirates’ 10 weekly flights in October 2020 from Nairobi airport transport, among other commodities, fresh fruits and vegetables such as green beans, pineapples, mangoes and avocadoes. The produce arrives in Dubai and then gets distributed to other regional markets in the Middle East and onwards to Europe.
03. Ethiopian Airlines appears to be unveiling two new business class products
Ethiopian Airlines appears to be introducing two new business class seats on its 787 and A350 fleet. While no official statement has been made, a promotional video from the airline highlights the new product on its A350. The products are a significant upgrade from Ethiopian’s current 2-2-2 business class product.
Ethiopian Airlines first rolled out an updated business class product on its most recent 787-9 aircraft. The cabin is configured out in a 1-2-1 configuration, giving all passenger direct aisle access and a lot more space.
04. flydubai carries the First Israeli Tourists to the UAE
On Sunday, a flydubai Boeing 737 touched down in Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, ready to transport tourists back to the UAE. The UAE carrier successfully operated the return flight carrying the airline’s first tourists to fly directly between the two nations on a special charter flight. There was no water-canon or celebration upon arrival as the route’s official launch won’t take place until November 26th.
flydubai’s flight FZ8194 landed safely in Dubai at 17:42 after just under three hours in the air. For almost the first time in history, a direct flight between Dubai and Israel carried tourists rather than government officials. The flight crossed Jordan and Saudi Arabia before heading across the Persian Sea and finally landing in Dubai. Upon arrival, the Israeli tourists filled in health forms and took part in mandatory COVID-19 testing.
A mask-clad employee walks across a Flydubai aircraft on the tarmac of Dubai International Airport, on April 6, 2020. (Photo by KARIM SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)
05. 1 In 4 passengers don’t believe Airlines are doing enough for the Environment
This Tuesday, Inmarsat has launched its Passenger Confidence Tracker, a survey of almost 10,000 fliers that brings together insight into how people are feeling about travel in the post-COVID age. Conducted in partnership with Yonder, it’s the largest and most significant piece of research of its type. One of the areas researched was the sustainability of flying; the responses proved that this is still high on the minds of passengers, and indeed more than half would choose an airline based on its sustainability efforts.
06. Boeing 737 MAX Certification Reportedly just days away
The Boeing 737 MAX, which hasn’t flown commercially since March 2019, could be certified by the Federal Aviation Administration in the next couple of weeks. Sources have told media that the process is in its final stages, citing November 18th as the possible date for the ungrounding. It would be a huge milestone for Boeing and would mark the beginning of the end of this crisis.
07. Exclusive Interview: How Emirates Airlines is adapting with the post COVID-19 situation
At the end of last month, Emirates Airlines revealed a new biometric pathway through Dubai International Airport (DXB). However, this technological initiative is not the only process in place following the impact of the global health crisis. Simple Flying spoke with Emirates COO Adel Al Redha about how the carrier is adapting to the conditions.
08. Ugandan Tourism projected to lose a whooping UgShs4 trillion by December- Report
According to a report by the Ministry of Tourism, Uganda will as by the end of December, lose up to a one million foreign tourist arrivals, that could account to UgShs 4 trillion.
The published report highlights the impact of Covid-19 on the Tourism sector was and notes that tourist arrivals that had been projected to increase to 1.6 million in 2020 is most unlikely due to the pandemic effects.
09. Emirates SkyCargo unveils Airbus A380 ‘mini-freighter’ charter operations
Emirates SkyCargo has started utilising its Airbus A380 aircraft on select cargo charter operations to transport urgently required cargo across its network. The first dedicated Emirates A380 ‘mini-freighter’ successfully transported medical supplies between Seoul and Amsterdam via Dubai.
Working collaboratively with the Engineering and Flight Operations teams within Emirates, the air cargo carrier has optimised the cargo capacity of the Airbus A380 to safely transport around 50 tonnes of cargo per flight in the bellyhold of the aircraft.
10. Covid downtime is a chance for airports to light up their futures
Airport operators have an opportunity to upgrade their infrastructure and secure a better long-term future for themselves while air traffic remains low.
That is according to airfield light monitoring and control firm, MC Solutions, which has seen an uptick in its fibre optic system in the wake of the pandemic.
Global air traffic is still well below 2019 levels and with flight frequencies unlikely to increase greatly before the end of the year, airports have a rare chance to rehabilitate their airfield system, said Dr Debora Cazzani, marketing and export manager of the Italian family firm.
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