Asky Urges Governments To Reduce Operating Costs, Beats Its 2023 Targets
MR. ESAYAS WOLDEMARIAM HAILU, Director General, Asky, in this interview with AVIATION MONITOR during the 2023 YD Week held in Abuja, Nigeria, speaks on his airline’s activities, priorities, challenges and expectations
Q: AT THE BEGINNING OF 2023, YOU HAD SOME TARGETS YOU SET TO ACHIEVE IN TERMS OF TRAFFIC, ROUTE EXPANSION AND SO ON. THIS IS NOVEMBER. WHAT ARE SOME OF THOSE TARGETS AND WHERE ARE YOU ON YOUR TARGETS?
A: Asky has different time zones for its strategy plans. Medium term is five years. Short term is one year. For one year, our target has been to reach 14 aircraft and 28 destinations and we have attained that target. We wanted to start Nairobi in Kenya and Luanda in Angola. We achieved it. We were targeting about 1.2 million passengers per annum. We are almost there. So, we have torched that one also, even before the year is concluded. So, our plans are being met. We have been able to meet them. We have even beaten our target. So far, everything is going well.
Q: WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ARE PRIORITIES OF ASKY PRESENTLY?
A: The priorities of Asky is that the West and Central African sub-region is still under- served when it comes to air traffic social connectivity. So, our priority is to integrate the region even better, to increase frequencies and to guarantee supply of air connectivity and by so doing, integrate the region economically. We are working towards this. You know, when it comes to airline business, there could be so many airlines but reliability, customer service and other things could be lacking. So, we want to be airline of choice by rendering essential connectivity of people and goods. That is what we are planning.
Q: WHAT COULD BE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES YOU ARE FACING IN YOUR BASE COUNTRY AND IN THE REGION?
A: In the region, the region has been so unpredictable for us because you know, we start operating to some places but when there are some political turmoil, airspace is closed and traffic is interrupted and it takes a while before airspaces are opened so that we can commence operations. That is one challenge. The other challenge is high cost of operations in the region. Aviation infrastructures are very expensive in charges, handling, catering; airport facilities are very expensive. Even the tax on the ticket is high for the customer to buy. So, these things, aviation being essential from the economic and cultural perspective to the people, it is our wish to see that the governments in West & Central Africa review the cost of operation for the airlines or come down to a reasonable degree so that more airlines become profitable and give them a good economic dividend which comes from facilitating traffic.
Q: THERE HAVE BEEN COMPLAINTS ABOUT BRAIN DRAIN IN AFRICA. WHAT IS YOUR PERCEPTION ABOUT THIS ISSUE AND WHAT WOULD BE YOUR ADVICE?
A: You know, when it comes to African professionals going to the northern hemisphere, be it Europe or America and work there, that has happened in many sectors but essentially in aviation, Africa does not have so many professionals yet. It is not a brain drain. It is a matter of opening wide outlets of training to train the young people in the aviation sector. Africa has a need for that. It is not that we are draining them. We don’t have them enough. So, African governments need to invest more on aviation training capabilities for aviation professionals to be available in the continent.AM
