Uganda Airlines (1976) (Entebbe) and its much talked-about resurrection are once again on the cards with reports Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) officials have held preliminary talks with government regarding the project's relaunch.

According to the Voice of America, further consultations with the Ugandan Ministry of Works and Transport, the Ministry of Finance, and the cabinet are scheduled to be held in due course. If successful, the framework for the airline’s revival could be taken before parliament and worked into the next fiscal year.

Following years of losses and a failed 49% sell-off bid to South African Airways (SA, Johannesburg O.R. Tambo) in the late 90s, Kampala liquidated Uganda Airlines in 2001 citing heavy debts and poor management. However, while the project has been on the drawing board since 2012, the recent demise of Air Uganda (Entebbe) has given added impetus to its renewal.

Prior to Air Uganda's shut down in June this year, government had held substantive talks with the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development's(AKFED) concerning a possible buy-in. However, an offer of a 5% stake in the airline was rejected by Uganda on the grounds that it needed total board control so as to ensure the carrier fulfilled national priorities such as mounting long-haul routes that while strategically important may not be attractive to a private investor.

Other proposals submitted last year, and one which the UCAA has reportedly backed, included one from Air Oasis (UG) Limited, the Ugandan coordinating team for the American-backed Comorian operator, flyComoros (Moroni International).

In their proposal, investors wanted to establish a new carrier in which they would control 80% of its shareholding with government and Ugandan investors the rest. With an initial fleet of 23 aircraft, the start-up would have required USD200million in initial funding.

Oasis had proposed a BOT-type (Build-Operate-Transfer) initiative in which they would have run the airline for a period of 3-5 years before exiting after having recovered their initial investment in addition to a good return on their investment. On Oasis' exit, investors say, all shareholding would have reverted to the state.