Flight operations of the airline will gradually return to normal this weekend after pilots ended the costly strike, which saw the national flag carrier lose millions of dollars. The pilots were demanding payment of outstanding salaries and allowances.
The passenger airline owed its workers about US$9 million in unpaid salaries and allowances. The strike by the pilots and cabin crew forced Air Zimbabwe to cancel most of its domestic, regional and international flights.
The pilots were reporting back to work on Friday and it is believed the airline will step up operations in the next 48 hours. It is also expecting to return to operating at normal capacity by next week Monday.
The strike, which left hundreds of regional and international passengers stranded, has further damaged the image of the airline, which used to be a symbol of prestige but is now widely thought of being on its death bed.
Air Zimbabwe operates a daily Harare-Johannesburg route, a twice-weekly flight to London and a weekly flight to Beijing, China. Like many state businesses in Zimbabwe, Air Zimbabwe has been hit hard by mounting debts and mismanagement.
SW Radio Africa’s Bulawayo correspondent Lionel Saungweme said on Friday that the best option to resolve the never ending crisis at the airline is to privatise or merge it with other partners. He said the pilots’ action has once again reignited debate over the privatisation of such ailing state-owned enterprises.
This comes as analysts say any move on the part of the government to further subsidise the airline or other ailing national institutions, will not bode well with international donors.
The country’s tourism sector has also been hard hit by the Air Zimbabwe strike due to a drastic decline in tourist arrivals to key resort areas, particularly Victoria Falls.
The protracted dispute between management and the pilots resulted in massive cancellation of bookings by tourists who had planned to visit Victoria Falls, the country’s prime tourist destination in the month of August.
Reports said tourism officials estimate that at least 80 percent of bookings have been cancelled so far since the Air Zimbabwe pilots went on strike since July. -SW Radio Africa News
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