RwandAir is a small airline serving 26 destinations in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. However, we think RwandAir could eventually become the next Singapore Airlines. As a matter of fact, Rwanda's President, Paul Kagame, wants to turn the country of Rwanda into 'the Singapore of Africa'.

RwandAir A330
RwandAir has 12 aircraft in its fleet. Photo: Wikipedia.

Let's take a look at Singapore Airlines and RwandAir.

Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines was founded in 1947, offering just three weekly flights. Today, Singapore Airlines is the flag carrier of Singapore and considered one of the best airlines in the world. The airline operates a fleet of 122 aircraft and serves 64 destinations around the globe.

Singapore went from being a third-world country to a first-world country in around just 60 years. As a matter of fact, the country's GDP rose from $700 million in the 1960s to $320 billion today. Today, Singapore is the third richest country in the world.

According to Wendover Publications, there are several reasons for this growth. First of all, Singapore is centrally located. Secondly, it is politically stable. Thirdly, it is easy to do business in Singapore.

Singapore's central location is a great asset; however, it is only this valuable because the country has an airline that connects it with the rest of the world. Without Singapore Airlines, Singapore would have not been able to become the business hub it is today. As Singapore's economy grew, so did Singapore Airlines.

Singapore Airlines A350
Singapore Airlines was named the 'World's Best Airline' in the 2018 Skytrax Awards. Photo: Singapore Airlines.

RwandAir

RwandAir is the flag carrier of Rwanda. The airline was founded in 2002 after Air Rwanda ceased operations. As mentioned previously, the airline currently serves 26 destinations and operates 12 aircraft.

Just like Singapore, Rwanda is in a central location. As a matter of fact, the country is located close to the middle of Africa. Additionally, it is easy to do business in Rwanda; it has the most business-friendly environment in Africa. Rwanda wants to attract foreign business investors and has been successful in doing so in recent years. So it seems there are more similarities between the two countries than you might have thought.

Could RwandAir experience the same growth as Singapore Airlines did?

RwandAir Boeing 737
RwandAir's slogan is 'Fly the dream of Africa'. Photo: Wikimedia.

As Rwanda's economy grows, it will become increasingly important for the nation to have an airline that connects it with Africa and the rest of the world. RwandAir has already expanded its route network and added larger aircraft, and is considering adding flights to China and New York. This is just the beginning.

All in all, it seems that there is a good possibility that the airline will experience even more growth as Rwanda is trying to become the 'Singapore of Africa'.

What do you think? Could RwandAir become the next Singapore Airlines?