The British Airways (BA) has disclosed that it will suspend its direct flight between Harare and Heathrow with effect from October 28, this year.
BA’s Commercial Manager for South East West Africa, Steve Harrison, cited viability
challenges as the major reason for the withdrawal of the flight.
Mr Harrison told Zimbabwe’s News Agency,New Ziana today that the airline would,
however, continue to have its presence in Zimbabwe through Comair, which operates
services from Harare and Victoria Falls to Johannesburg.
The BA official observed that the route between Harare and Heathrow has been making
a considerable loss over the past few years,” he said.
Mr Harrison said over the years, the passenger volumes had reduced while costs had
continued to spiral in spite of increased revenues.
“We operate in a highly competitive global market and cannot afford to sustain these
losses on the Harare route any longer.”
He cited the economic situation prevailing in Zimbabwe as having also contributed to
the decline in market demand.
Passengers who had already booked direct flights to Heathrow would be booked on
alternative flights or be reimbursed, according to Harrison.
Meanwhile, sources alleged that the company was also closing its Harare office, and
had given employees at least two weeks notice to wind up operations.
But in a telephone interview with New Ziana, the company’s spokesperson, Stan
Higgins, flatly denied the allegations that the company was planning to close.
He said what had only changed since February was the selling of tickets through
travel agencies or via the internet and no longer directly at the office.
“BA is still operating in Zimbabwe and that is why it even has a new country
manager,” he said.
This is another sanction plan on Zim. I hope those of us in Zambia who are putting much hopes on foreign investors will learn many lessons from our past as well as from the Zim situations. These investors will always leave us after making their profits when things get tough. We nationals need to rise up and come up with our own airlines & some other key businesses which will remain in our nations for a long time. A Zambian in Chingola with one hand started modifying car egines and made his own cars some years ago. He appealled to World Bank for a $1 million loan & I never heard of him again. I wrote to the Post for his address because I thought it would be possible to ask other Zambians like myself to invest in his project, but I never got an answer. Does any one have any info on him or is he dead?
Very informative post on harare flights…
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