Congo Airways S.A. is the

state-owned State ownership, also called public ownership or government ownership, is the ownership of an industry, asset, property, or enterprise by the national government of a country or state, or a public body representing a community, as opposed to ...

flag carrier A flag carrier is a transport company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given sovereign state, enjoys preferential rights or privileges accorded by that government for international operations. Histo ...

airline of the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

(DRC). With a paid-up capital of

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90 million, it started operations on 20 October 2015. It is banned from flying into the EU.

History

Congo Airways was created on 15 August 2014 at the government's instigation, and made its first flight on 20 October 2015 using two Airbus A320 aircraft acquired from

Alitalia Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A., operating as Alitalia (), was an Italian airline which was once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy. The company had its head office in Fiumicino, in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. ...

. The company initially served Congolese destinations from its base at

N'djili Airport N'djili Airport ( ), also known as N'Djili International Airport and Kinshasa International Airport (French language, French ''Aéroport international de N'Djili'' or ''Aéroport international de Kinshasa''), serves the city of Kinshasa and is ...

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

, and planned to increase its fleet and serve regional and international markets. Air France Consulting provided technical assistance to the airline. One of the airline's aircraft was impounded in Dublin for a few weeks in September 2015 where it was to be painted. On 10 December 2019, Congo Airways signed a $194.4 million deal to acquire two E175 jets from

Embraer Embraer S.A. () is a Brazilian multinational aerospace corporation. It develops and manufactures aircraft and aviation systems, and provides leasing, equipment, and technical support services. Embraer is the third largest producer of civil air ...

. The jets were expected to be delivered in Q4 2020. On 26 May 2020, Congo Airways have converted the firm order made in December 2019 for two E175 aircraft, with purchase rights for two more, into a firm order for two E190-E2 jets, with purchase rights for a further two. The jets are expected to be delivered in Q2 2022. In September 2021, the airline also executed a wet lease of two

Embraer 190 The Embraer E-Jet family is a series of four-abreast, narrow-body, short- to medium-range, twin-engined jet airliners designed and produced by Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer. The E-Jet was designed to complement Embraer’s earlier ...

aircraft for two years from

Kenya Airways Kenya Airways Ltd., more commonly known as Kenya Airways, is the flag carrier airline of Kenya. The company was founded in 1977, after the dissolution of East African Airways. Its head office is located in Embakasi, Nairobi, with its Airline hu ...

Corporate affairs

Ownership

The airline is 100% state-controlled, being owned by the Government of the

DRC The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

. Shareholders are reported to be various government agencies: the Intermodal Freight Management Office (OGEFREM), the National Social Security Institute (INSS), the General of Quarries and Mines ( Gécamines), the Congolese Transport and Ports Society (SCTP), the Industry Promotion Fund (FPI) and the Airway Authority (RVA).

Business trends

Congo Airways does not appear to have published its accounts; also, in an audit dated 28 May 2021 there were detailed allegations that embezzlement and over-invoicing totalling several million dollars had taken place at Congo Airways over recent years. Available figures (largely from AFRAA reports, which contain inconsistencies) are shown below (for years ending 31 December):

Destinations

, the company served the Lubumbashi–Kinshasa sector prior to suspending operations. In May 2018 the airline commenced flights to Douala and Johannesburg-OR Tambo Airport.

Codeshare agreements

Fleet

Congo airways airbus a320 18 002 jpg 640 350 1 jpeg 640 350 1

As of August 2019, the Congo Airways fleet consisted of the following aircraft:

References

External links

* {{Subject bar , portal1=Democratic Republic of the Congo , portal2=Companies , portal3=Aviation , auto=y , d=y Airlines of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Airlines established in 2015 Airlines banned in the European Union 2015 establishments in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Companies based in Kinshasa