A fourth Dash 8-400 for TAAG Angola Airlines
De Havilland Aircraft of Canada announced on Monday, September 6, the delivery of a new Dash8-400 to TAAG Angola Airlines. The 74-seat aircraft (MSN 4629) is the fourth of a planned six-unit order for the airline. The first three (MSN 4616/4619/4620) were delivered in July, August 2020 and February 2021 respectively.
These new aircraft meet the strategic thrusts of the company's turnaround plan, developed in July 2019. "One of the main objectives of our restructuring and reform plan is the financial balance of the company. And financial balance depends, among other things, on the balance of the fleet," explained Rui Carreira, TAAG's president and CEO last year.
Since their introduction, the Dash8-400s have been used primarily on the domestic network, which includes a dozen routes. The Dash8-400 is also expected to serve regional destinations near Luanda.
TAAG Angola Airlines hopes to make the aircraft the pillar of the reconstruction of its network, which has been drastically affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Angolan flag, which carries an average of 1.5 million passengers per year, recorded a drastic drop in traffic last year, with losses in revenue reaching up to US$ 270 million, and the bleeding is far from over for this year.
In addition to the Dash8-400s, TAAG Angola Airlines' fleet also includes five Boeing 737-700s, three 777-200s and five 777-300s.
