Hiiraan Online
Monday December 11, 2017
Mogadishu (HOL) - The Somali Federal Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation, Mohamed Abdullahi Salad held a consultative meeting with Somali Airlines employees on Saturday to discuss the revival of Somalia's long-defunct flag carrier, Somali Airlines.
Somali Airlines was grounded in 1991 when Somalia's central government collapsed.
The one day, closed-door meeting was to consult with former members of Somali Airlines and gauge their opinion on if and how the airline could resume operations again. It was the first time in years that Somali Airlines employees met to discuss the future of the airline.
The meeting tried to tackle two key questions:
a) Is it possible to revive Somali Airlines in this very competitive market?
b) And what will be the best way to structure the airline.
For over two decades, Somalia's skies have been dominated by a host of private companies such as Jubba Airways, Daalo Airlines, African Express, Freedom Airline Express and Ocean Airlines. As the guns began to fall silent, major international airlines such as Turkish Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines and flydubai have all began to move in and stake a claim to a share of the lucrative market.
The consultation group concluded that now is the right time to relaunch the airline, insisting that there is a market for domestic and international flights.
A large number of Somali's fly short distances as short as 90km within the country because of bad roads and the threat of Al-Shabaab. They argued that this creates a lucrative domestic market.
Somalia's large diaspora, the group says, will be lured by the prestige of the national flag carrier and thus would be able to carve out a niche in the market.
Mr. Salad said that his ministry and the government is committed to reviving Somali airlines and would work proactively on initiating the first steps.
The national carrier was formed on March 9, 1964, by the Somali Government and Alitalia, each having a 50% holding. Services began in July of that year with three domestic flights connecting Mogadishu with other parts of the country.
At its height, Somali Airlines offered regular flights to Abu Dhabi, Cairo, Frankfurt, Jeddah, Nairobi, Banjul and Rome.
The carrier which once dubbed "The White Star Service" was one of fastest growing Airlines in Africa before it ceased its operations in 1991.