Air Malawi
Air Malawi is the flag carrier airline of Malawi, and is located at Lilongwe Malawi which is also the airline’s headquarters. Air Malawi is owned by the government and operates regional passenger services. The main hub of Air Malawi is at Blantyre Chileka International Airport and it also operates from Lilongwe International Airport. Air Malawi concentrates on ferrying passengers on regional and domestic flights with a fleet of four aircrafts.
Air Malawi started flight operations in 1964 under the banner of Central African Airways with a fleet of three De Havilland Canada DHC 2 Beavers and a Douglas DC3. In 1967, the airline started operating independently and added one Beech C55 Baron and 2 ex CAA Vickers Viscounts aircrafts to the fleet to operate on domestic routes. In 1968 a new route between Blantyre and Johannesburg was started. Till 1970, the airline disposed off many of its aircrafts and bought new BAC ONE Eleven from Zambia Airways. In 1974 services to Gatwick Airport, London via Nairobi began, and in the same year flights from Blantyre to Swaziland and Manzizni with an HS-748 aircraft were started. The airline expanded its network and new destinations were added like, Amsterdam, Lusaka, Beira, Harare, Ndola, Salisburg and Seychelles. In 1978, VC-10 aircrafts were withdrawn from the fleet and three Shorts Skyyans and one Beechcraft King Air were purchased. In 1987, one Shorts Skyyan was shot down by the Mozambican Armed Forces, and after that Boeing aircrafts were purchased. In 2000 Air Malawi faced financial losses and was ready to sell its assets, and then the government decided to privatize the airline. In 2007, Air Malawi held talks with Comair of South Africa, and signed a deal and the airline posted a profit of $135 million. In 2008, the airline had a dispute with Comair and the government took over 49% shares of the airline.
Currently Air Malawi has 1 ATR 42-320 and 2 Boeing 737-200 aircrafts which operate to Lubumbashi in Congo, Democratic Rep, Nairobi in Kenya, Nampula in Mozambique, Blantyre and Lilongwe in Malawi, Dar-es-Salam in Tanzania, London, Johannesburg in South Africa, Dubai in UAE, Lusaka in Zambia and Harare in Zimbabwe.
Whether flying for business or leisure, passengers enjoy great in flight amenities and friendly service form the airline’s courteous staff. Delicious in-flight food and drinks are offered. Air Malawi also has a frequent flyer program that awards points, and offers various rewards to redeem the points earned. Some of the Frequent Flyer Program benefits are; class upgrade, free tickets, and extra baggage allowance and priority on waiting list when flights are full.
Air Malawi has rules on luggage allowance, both in the cabin and in the cargo hold. The quantity and weight of luggage per passenger vary according to the class of destination and air ticket. Air Malawi provides passengers all the information regarding the number of pieces and weight per passenger allowed. Business class passengers can carry 3 pieces of 23 kg each, while economy class passengers can carry 2 pieces of 23 kg each. Marine/seaman/military personnel can carry 3 pieces of 23 kg each.
Air Malawi’s website is under construction; however passengers can make their booking through travel agents.