Uganda Airlines' plans to fly directly to London have been stopped as the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) has failed to update its certification from the International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO).
The national carrier plans to operate flights between the United Kingdom and Entebbe International Airport, Uganda's single international hub. According to local sources, the UCAA has been trying to update the airport's certification since the last ICAO inspection in 2014.
The airport must meet many standards, including accident investigations, operational safety, and security. According to reports, during the last inspection, ICAO scrutinized the airport's legislation, organization, licensing, operations, airworthiness, accident investigations, air navigation services, and aerodromes.
Entebbe Airport scored 61.6% in the areas above. This score is well below the global average, with countries in the region scoring higher. With the last audit being carried out nearly a decade ago, Uganda Airlines may have to wait longer before it touches London.
Progress at Entebbe
In order to start flying to the UK, Entebbe Airport, Uganda Airlines, and the regulatory environment in Uganda, all need to comply with ICAO standards and recommended practices; this is a requirement of the UK's Third Country Operator Authorisation (TCO). Addressing compliance requirements meant a review of the Uganda Civil Aviation Regulations 2020 to the latest ICAO standards, something that was completed in August 2022.
Alongside this, Uganda Airlines needed to provide evidence of compliance with the standards, and this was completed in October 2022.
The final sticking point is the certification of the airport - something that began in 2015 with support from ICAO. It became clear that certification would only be achieved through changes and approvals of the Aerodrome Manual and aerodrome characteristics, among others. The UCAA advises Simple Flying that substantial investments have been made in order to meet these requirements, and that although the COVID pandemic delayed completion, it is now in its final stages.
Uganda Airlines plans to extend its route network
The nation's flag carrier has been ready to fly to the United Kingdom for years. After purchasing two Airbus A330-800 aircraft in 2020 and 2021, the airline secured slots for departures and arrivals at London's Heathrow International Airport. Furthermore, it submitted an application for an Air Operator's Certificate to operate in the UK and expected to commence the flights in January 2021.
Two years later, and still unable to operate this critical and profitable route, Uganda Airlines solely blames the UCAA and its certification committee. Following the failure of the last ICAO inspection, the committee spent billions of taxpayer money on benchmarking in several countries, but the standards still have not been met.
Entebbe International Airport has been under public scrutiny for a while. This story comes not long after civilians exposed extortion, corruption, and other unethical practices by airport officials. With all these issues surfacing, Uganda Airlines' hopes of flying from Entebbe to London hang in the balance.
Source: ch-aviation, chimpreports