Korongo Airlines (Lubumbashi) has entered into talks with the Congolese government after Kinshasa unilaterally revoked all local airlines' international traffic rights. The DR Congo Airline news blog says Korongo has denied its Johannesburg O.R. Tambo route has been affected by the move, which should also impact flyCAA (BU, Kinshasa N'Djili) and its own Johannesburg flights.
At this point, both CAA and Korongo continue to sell tickets for their flights linking Lubumbashi and Johannesburg. According to CAA CEO David Blattner, the carrier has no plans to suspend its services to South Africa.
On the back of recommendations by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Congo's Transport Minister, Justin Kalumba, has now revoked three more airlines' operating licences - Bengard Airways, Okapi Airlines (Kinshasa N'Djili) and Congo Express (Kinshasa N'Djili) - on grounds they did not pass Stage 2 of the ICAO-endorsed operational audit. In March, Kalumba revoked the licences of ten other airlines on similar grounds.
Four other airlines - Doren Air Cargo (Goma), Mango Airlines (DR Congo) (Beni), Trans Air Cargo Service (Kinshasa N'Djili) and Will Airlift - have now been placed on month-long probation to correct minor violations of the country's air code.
