UN staff banned from flying

  1. Posted on Friday 9 April 2010 - 15:25
    Mtheto Lungu
    Image of Mtheto Lungu
    Mtheto Lungu, AfricaNews reporter in Lilongwe, Malawi
    All United Nations (UN) staff have been banned from flying Africa's friendly airline, Air Malawi. The ban follows the career's report on operational problems, according to a Safety Advisory document from the UN to staff who attended the recent joint AU and UN for Africa (ECA) finance ministers' conference.
    Ban-Ki-Moon.jpg
    The report cited recent Air Malawi problems, the resignation of pilots and engineers. The incidents have raised questions about the airline’s safety and sustainability.

    “UN staff are therefore not authorized to travel on Air Malawi,” read the document.

    Malawi Head of Security Affairs, Sally Tembo, told the local press the document is an internal matter. It was not for public consumption.

    “Perhaps I need to speak to our legal people first. As of now I cannot comment,” Tembo told the Daily Times.

    The airline boss, chief executive Wisdom Mchungula wondered why the UN had taken that decision.

    “The UN would be in a better position to explain. Do you hear of any flight cancellations from us? Our safety management remains intact,” he said.

    Air Malawi is facing a series of financial, human and material resources. It is currently utilizing a plane that was hired from South Africa. Has a huge debt case in the commercial courts against a foreign company that fixed one of its planes and there is a non relenting pilot resignations.

    Operating under a Class C Category, the UN staff is only supposed to fly on Category A but may use Category B where Category A is not available.

Latest News

  1. OPINION: Welcome to African Green Revolution24/05For the past century and a half, Africa has tried various agricultural approaches without much success.
  2. Egyptians vote in historic election23/05Egyptians began voting freely on Wednesday for the first time to pick their president in a wide open election that pits Islamists against men who serv…
  3. Africa Day 2012 - a moment for reflection and…22/0525th May is Africa Day. For many years it has been a celebration of African unity. It dates back to 1963 when the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) …
  4. South Africa's African agenda21/05The Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa, Kgalema Mothlanthe paid a rare visit to Ghana in April at the invitation of John Dramani Mahama …
  5. Women struggle to rinse hunger, poverty stains21/05Just looking at her one clearly appreciates that she is old and frail therefore in need of support for food, clothing and shelter to live comfortably …
  6. Climate Climate change affects migratory birds…21/05Changes in the climate globally have affected the movement of both migratory and resident species of birds, Nature Uganda has said.
  7. Ghana: Foreign retailers cited for currency…18/05The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) is attributing the sharp depreciation of the Ghana cedi against major currencies to the illegal activiti…
  8. Kenya: Community radio brings succour to…18/05Korogocho, a slum in northeastern Nairobi with 100,000 inhabitants, had many of the ingredients for a political explosion similar to those that rocked…
  9. Veld fires 'flame' Zimbabwe's…16/05Over the years, Zimbabwe has experienced the scourge of veld fires destroying property worth thousands of dollars.
  10. Liberia commends ECOWAS for support14/05The induction training of pioneer Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Volunteers for Liberia kicked off in Monrovia, with the Deputy Mi…
  11. Vanishing Lake Chad puts 30m lives at risk14/05As you approach the Lake Chad basin from Maiduguri, in north-eastern Nigeria, the evidence of despair is telling.
  12. Heavy rains cause havoc in Kenya14/05Heavy Rainfall continued to wreak havoc across the country leading to the suspension of relief food in some parts of the country as most roads in Turk…
  13. Zimbabwe: Growth points lie dormant14/05The Zimbabwean government mooted the concept of growth points in the 1980s as a means of decongesting cities and towns.
  14. Sierra Leone improves in infant mortality11/05Sierra Leone has improved in infant mortality cases according to Save the Children- World Motherhood index 2012 report. The West Africa country descri…
  15. Zimbabwe: Resettled farmers fail to utilize…10/05Resettled farmers in Zimbabwe are failing to utilize land due to inadequate farming inputs and lack of resources.
News archive