TAAG Angola Airlines receives its sixth and final Dash8-400
In 2019, TAAG Angola Airlines has ordered six Dash 8-400s. In addition to being part of its fleet modernisation strategy, the turboprop introduction is in line with its policy of optimising its domestic and sub-regional network.
TAAG Angola Airlines has taken delivery of a new Dash8-400. The aircraft, which left Toronto, Canada on June 30th, arrived in Luanda on Saturday July 2nd after successive stops in Santa Maria (Azores/Portugal), Nouakchott (Mauritania) and Abidjan (Ivory Coast).
The new aircraft, MSN 4636, registered D2-TFF, has been given the name "Dande", a reference to a municipality in the northwest of Angola. This is the last aircraft of a six-unit order contracted with the Canadian aircraft manufacturer.
The first five (MSN 4616/4619/4620/4629/4630) were delivered in July and August 2020, February and September 2021, and then in January 2022. They can accommodate up to 74 passengers, including 10 in business class. Since their entry into service, they have been used primarily on the domestic network, which comprises a dozen routes.
The Dash8-400 is also expected to serve regional destinations close to Luanda, such as Windhoek (Namibia), Maputo (Mozambique) and Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo).
"The diversification of the fleet with the introduction of the new Dash8-400 models brings greater profitability and cost savings in our operations as well as a balanced ratio between the number of aircraft and the types of destinations (long-haul vs. medium-haul)," the company says. "Overall, and from a strategic point of view, this fleet optimisation allows the company to examine the potential/business case for re-opening new routes geographically close to Angola.
TAAG Angola Airlines hopes to make the Dash8-400 the mainstay of the rebuilding of its network, which was drastically affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Before the health crisis, the Congolese flag carried an average of 1.5 million passengers per year.
In addition to the Dash8-400s, TAAG Angola Airlines' fleet also includes seven Boeing 737-700s, three 777-200s and five 777-300s.
