New Bombardier enters commercial airline service in Rwanda

A week after RwandAir’s latest acquisition arrived in Kigali, the aircraft entered commercial service yesterday with a maiden flight from Kigali to Bujumbura and back to Kigali. This follows the completion of the integration procedures the airline had put into place, as crews were trained on the new aircraft in emergency evacuation as well as service elements, getting them used to the new galley and layout of the plane.

A full schedule for the aircraft is going underway as of early today, Tuesday, when the Bombardier Q 400 NextGen will begin to make regular appearances in Kamembe, RwandAir’s only domestic destination and springboard to Nyungwe Forest National Park, but also fly to such destinations like Entebbe, Bujumbura, and other regional airports where the 67-seat, dual-class turboprop aircraft now provides the right size for the respective routes.

Travelers and travel agents broadly welcomed the arrival of the new aircraft as it now provides both business and economy class cabins across the entire fleet of aircrafts now in use, thought crucial to provide in particular business travelers with the same level of service throughout the journey, irrespective of the aircraft type used.

Meanwhile the airline has also confirmed that the commercial launch of flights to Douala is on course for the end of March, when RwandAir will add their 5th West African destination after Brazzaville, Libreville, Lagos, and Accra with 5 flights a week.