On Friday, December 6, 2024, an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800 successfully landed at Prempeh I International Airport after flying directly from London Gatwick Airport. In light of this success, the Ghana Airports Company announced an additional flight, this time operating from Kumasi to London Gatwick.

Due to low demand, GhanaAviationNews sources say that the flight has been postponed to a later date, which has not yet been announced to the public.

The Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) facilitated the first special direct charter flight and is facilitating the Kumasi-London flight initially planned for December 15, 2024.

Ethiopian Airlines operated the maiden flight using a Boeing 737-800 that could accommodate 154 passengers, with 16 Business and 138 Economy seats. However, AviationGhana sources reveal that the flight was almost empty.

“For all the talk about Kumasi to London being such a wonderful route, they couldn’t even find 50 people to take a subsidized junket,” Sean Mendis, Africa Aviation Specialist and CEO of Seanmendis.com, stated.

Expert chides GACL for Kumasi Airport Charade

Mr. Mendis says the approach adopted by GACL to attract flights to Kumasi is completely wrong and would ultimately hurt its current airline customers.

“Why would an airline consider investing in flights to Kumasi when it is clear that the airport operator will take the fees you pay them and charter some other airline at a significant loss and subsidy? These kinds of things hurt the viability of an airport rather than help them. Absolutely nothing has been “proved” today [maiden Lindon-Kumasi flight]. A perfect example of how to not develop routes and how to alienate your airline customers,” he said.

Kumasi Airport Limitations

Renovated and expanded at a cost of about £66 million, the facility now has two boarding bridges, a road network, a perimeter fence, a substation, and a parking lot, among other things. Despite several enquiries by major international flights about commencing direct service to Kumasi, the capital of Ghana’s Ashanti Region, many are yet to make a decision due to the runway’s limitations.

The current runway pavement is expected to be extended from 1,981 meters to 2,320 meters as part of Phase III of the Kumasi Airport Project, which is expected to cost around £ 58.9 million.

The runway extension will remove any payload restrictions and make it commercially viable for major international airlines such as Ethiopian Airlines, Emirates, Qatar, and British Airways, among others, to consider regular scheduled flights to the airport using wide-body aircraft beyond the currently allowed B737s.

“Kumasi has a market for flights. It has a seasonal market for flights to Europe as well. But it’s not commercially viable given the payload restrictions currently involved. It’s as simple as that,” Sean Mendis noted in an earlier interview with GhanaAviationNews.