Zambia Airways (1964) (Lusaka) owner, the Zambian government, has set a deadline of June 30 for the relaunch of a national carrier Transport, Works, Supply and Communications Minister Yamfwa Mukanga has told Lusaka's QFM radio.
Mukanga said the absence of a de-facto national carrier has negatively affected the development of Zambia's tourism, non-traditional exports and other industries that directly or indirectly rely on tourism.
The Zambia government was reported to have held talks with Qatar Airways (QR, Doha Hamad International) officials over their proposed participation in the re-establishment of a Zambian national airline and the development of Lusaka into a regional passenger and cargo hub.
Founded in 1964, Zambia Airways was government's last foray into the aviation sector. In 1992, as part of World Bank backed privatization reforms, the airline was cut loose from the national fiscus assuming responsibility for its own costs and overheads for the first time in its history.
This, coupled with a worsening economic climate, forced the carrier to dramatically scale back both its domestic and international operations. Eventually, the strain proved too much resulting in the airline's liquidation in 1995.
