The Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) has granted permission to Khartoum-based BADR Airlines to operate the Entebbe-Juba-Khartoum route, adding another player to the Ugandan aviation market.
On Friday at 2:30 pm, the firm made its first landing in Entebbe. It will run one flight per week, but the CAA reports that it expects to quadruple that number by this month.
Representatives from the aviation authorities of Uganda, South Sudan, and Sudan attended the reception to commemorate the event, along with Simon Deng (South Sudan) and Ahmed Ibrahim Ahmed (Sudan) in Kampala.
The friendly relations between the three countries, which had allowed the new player to enter the market, were praised by the UCAA Director for Airports and Security Haji Ayub Soma.
The launch of the new route, according to him, is proof that flying is still the safest means of transportation in the region, some of which are still unstable.
Soma promised the new airline that it would maintain high standards for safety and security and that it would provide its customers with quality services “that satisfies expectations of pleasant travelers’ experience.”
In order to promote growth and development, Ambassador Deng expressed the expectation that the new route would further enhance the flow of people and commerce in the area.
He pleaded with the corporate executives to consider hiring South Sudanese pilots to increase their skill and expertise.
The three countries’ strong ties, said Ambassador Ibrahim Ahmed, should encourage increased commerce and investment. The ambassador continued by saying that the trade balance between Sudan and Uganda was extremely poor—less than $100 million annually—and that it needed to improve.
Currently, BADR Airlines has fourteen destinations worldwide, one of which flies directly to Heathrow in London and Qatar.