Zambia Airways – A Review
By Dickson Jere
It was an impromptu trip into Jobourg.
Nothing serious planned except that it was a long weekend getaway. So, arrangements were haphazardly. I called my travel agent to check out the quickest and cheapest flights. She listed all the five airlines servicing the Lusaka – Johannesburg route.
The fares were crazy!
But Zambia Airways had the cheapest of all. In fact the fare was half the price of Airlink – my preferred airline on Southern Africa routes.
“Give them a try,” my travel agent said, vouching for the airline.
And so, I heed the call. It was done deal! My inaugural Zambia Airways flight into Jobourg was scheduled for Women’s Day.
At 07:45 hours sharp – we taxied off at KKIA. My first fear of delays by Zambia Airways was parried away with this promptness. The Boeing 737-800 was taking off on time!
Inside, the aircraft was chockablock!
Literally every seat was taken except business class which was empty – maybe Zambians are adhering to the Presidential directive to fly Economy on this 1:45minutes flight.
The interior of the plane is beautiful and clean. Seats are crammed but manageable for a short haul. However, I noticed some passengers – the bigger ones – struggled with the seatbelts. The aircraft has tiny belts but extras were provided.
Airborne. It was smooth.
The cabin crew members – very smart- seemed well trained with a very, very beautiful air hostess. The meals – sandwiches – were fresh except they came prepacked with juicy and you were given without choosing whether you wanted mango, guava or orange. A bit odd though – passengers must be given option though. I also noticed that the plane has no reading materials or even inflight Magazines. Why is Zambia Tourism agency not taking advantage of this space and provide materials? Publishers here is the business opportunity.
It is never too late I guess…
On return, I decided to do online checkin. Lo and behold, the boarding pass came with new flight timings. Instead of 11:50 am, the new flight time showed 10:00 hours. This meant abruptly changing my program too. When I got OR Tambo Airport at 08:00am, the counter was not opened. I inquired, I was told by South African lady that Zambia Airways are “not serious” especially “people in Lusaka”. I wonder why Zambia Airways does not have own staff at OR Tambo (I was told they use am agent) to help navigate the situation and assist passengers. The agents were unresponsive! This online checkin must be resolved especially that in modern times people prefer online bookings and checkins.
On both flights, the Captain was Ethiopian. I bemoaned. How I wish it was a Zambian crew all-round. But coincidentally, it was on the same day that my longtime colleague Major Tiza Mumbi (RTD) was announced as first female Captain of the airline. In congratulating her, I mentioned how I look forward to a full Zambian crew on Zambia Airways. Hopefully, on my next flight.
Will I go back to Zambia Airways? The answer is BIG yes!
There is room improvement though.
NB: the Lusaka-Johannesburg route is served by Zambia Airways, RwandAir, South Africa Airways, Proflight and Airlink.
GET MORE NEWS UPDATES
