Major runway work on Lubumbashi airport set to impact airlines

Information received from Korongo Airlines, which is based in Lubumbashi / Congo DR, speaks of major runway works going underway from 01st July onwards. As the work is taking place along the middle section of the single runway of the Luano Airport, will landings and take offs be restricted to smaller turboprop aircraft as the available runway length of 1.710 metres and width of only 50 metres does not allow jet operations during the period the work is carried out.

It is understood that work will be taking place every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday until 01st of October or such date when the work will have been completed.

Korongo Airlines was the first to react to the notice given by the Congolese airport authority and the Ministry of Transport, though it is expected that all other carriers flying jets into Lubumbashi will equally have to adjust their schedules to fit into the work schedule. Korongo has adjusted their departures in such a way that the key connections to Kinshasa for onward flights with Brussels Airlines and to Johannesburg continue though on Friday to Monday inclusive and a new temporary schedule can be found on the airline’s website www.flykorongo.com A NOTAM is available from the Congolese authorities and from Lubumbashi airport through the usual channels aviators use to access such information.