Congo Airways (8Z, Kinshasa N'Djili) has suspended flights to the central town of Mbuji Mayi after just two weeks following serious concerns about the state of the airfield's primary runway 17/35.
The Democratic Republic of Congo's Prospérité newspaper says operators have raised complaints with the country's civil aviation authority (Régie des voies aériennes - RVA) over the runway's disintegrating asphalt surface runway. As such, flyCAA (BU, Kinshasa N'Djili) is now the airport's only known scheduled operator.
Lose debris has wreaked havoc with departing aircraft with the now defunct Korongo Airlines (Lubumbashi) attributing its decision to cease operations on the damage its only aircraft - B737-300 OO-LTM (msn 25070) - sustained on take off from Mbuji Mayi in July this year.
Though the DRC government has invested USD55 million into the modernization of the airfield's passenger terminal, it has yet to commit any funds to the repair and upgrade of its apron, taxiways and runway.
