► NIGERIA: Cessna Caravan piloted by Taraba state governor, crashes; 6 in critical condition.

A Cessna 208B Grand Caravan (MCN: 208B2098 | 5N-BMJ) operated by the Taraba State Government and piloted by the Governor of Taraba State in Nigeria, Dambaba Sunta, has crashed with 6 persons aboard. All are said to have survived, but are in a critical condition.

■ ETHIOPIA: Lufthansa Technik lands MRO deal for Ethiopian's 787s.

Germany's Lufthansa Technik have signed a 10 year deal with Ethiopian Airlines (ET) that will see the Hamburg-based MRO specialists providing component support for Ethiopian's growing fleet of Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners.

► SEYCHELLES: Air Seychelles announces new Mahé - Praslin timetable.

Air Seychelles (HM) has announced a new domestic schedule, effective October 28, which will see an increase in capacity between Mahé and Praslin by 38%.

► CANADA: Ethiopian announces 787 ops to Toronto & Frankfurt for Winter 2012.

Ethiopian Airlines (ET) has announced further adjustments to its planned Boeing 787 operations. Frankfurt, Germany will receive the 787 on a daily basis from 27 October 2012 replacing its current 767, whilst Toronto, Canada's current 777-200LR service will be replaced with a 787 effective 9 November.

► AUSTRALIA: Air Mauritius increases Perth to 3x weekly from April 2013.

Air Mauritius(MK) will, from 1 April 2013, increase their Port Louis, Mauritius - Perth, Australia frequency from two to three times weekly, using an Airbus A330-200.

► SENEGAL: Air France switches Dakar to 777-300ER service from December.

Air France (AF) will, from 3 December 2012, boost their capacity on their Paris CDG - Dakar, Senegal with the introduction of a 3-class Boeing 777-300ER, replacing the current Boeing 777-200ER.

■ ZAMBIA: Ethiopia and Zambia close to signing BASA that will transform Lusaka into an Ethiopian Airlines hub.

As an addendum to our post on Friday regarding Zambia's ongoing aviation infrastructural improvement programme and its government's plans to form a new national carrier, Zambia's Ambassador in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia today announced the signing of a "number of economic, scientific and technical measures aimed at boosting existing bilateral relations" between the two countries.

► NIGERIA: FirstNation Airways A320s repoed by lessors?

Nigerian aviation blog Aviation in Nigeria is reporting that domestic carrier FirstNation Airways' (FRN) three leased Airbus A320s have been repossessed by their owners, US based Aviation Capital Group, though the report has yet to be verified by independent sources.

► ZIMBABWE: Finally, Air Zimbabwe to resume flights in November.

As reported previously by The African Aviation Tribune, Air Zimbabwe(UM), the on/off Zimbabwean national airline, has confirmed its intended return to service in a news conference held last night in the Zimbabwean capital, Harare.

■ TANZANIA: Precision Air extends Sabena Technics contract; readies itself for arrival of four additional ATR42s.

Just a week after sealing a 5 year deal with FastJet to provide general service and maintenance to its Airbus A319 fleet set to be based out of Dar es Salaam, Belgium's Sabena Technics, today, extended an existing contract with yet another Tanzanian carrier, Precision Air (PW), to now provide component support for its new fleet of ATR 42-600s and ATR72-600s.

► KENYA: Italy's Livingston Compagnia Aerea announces Kenya, Zanzibar, Mauritius for Winter 2012/2013.

Italy's Livingston Compagnia Aerea (JN), successor to the now defunct Italian airlines Livingston Energy Flight and Windjet (IV), has outlined plans for its proposed Winter 2012/2013 network.

►► EQUATORIAL GUINEA: Air Annobón gets first BAe146 (Pic); to start operations soon.

Equatoguinean start-up, Air Annobón, has received the first of two BAe146-300s from South African wet-leasors Fair Aviation, to be used on domestic routes. BAe 146 'ZS-SOR' is to be based on the island of Annobon, Equatorial Guinea, though what future plans the airline has, are as yet, unclear.

► NIGERIA: Passenger arrested after going crazy on Arik Air flight.

Nigeria's Aviation Minister, Stella Oduah-Ogiewonyi, moved quickly to dispel any rumours of an "attempted bombing" of an Arik Air (W3) domestic flight from Maiduguri to Abuja, in which a passenger is said to have suddenly started shouting "Allahu Akhabar!" (God is Great!), culminating in him being tackled by fellow passengers. 

► COTE D'IVOIRE: (Pics) Ouattara officially presented Air Cote d'Ivoire's aircraft but inaugural flights delayed again.

Air Cote d'Ivoire (VRE), the joint venture between the Government of Ivory Coast, Air France and the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, is to postpone its inaugural flight once more, this time "for a few weeks" likely implying a November launch.

● TUNISIA: Embraer finalizes African Development Bank deal as Bombardier pushes ahead with Casablanca plant.

Two of the world's leading aircraft manufacturers, Brazil's Embraer and Canada's Bombardier, are set to invest millions of dollars, in one way or another, into the African aviation scene, in the coming months and years. 

● ETHIOPIA: National Airways, Kenya Aeronautical College to open new aviation college.

Ethiopia's National Airways (7N), in conjunction with Nairobi-based Kenya Aeronautical College (KAC), are to open a centre for the training of aviation personnel in Addis Ababa, to cater for the shortage of skilled manpower currently facing Ethiopia's aerospace and aviation sectors.

► ZIMBABWE: Boardroom chaos delays Air Zimbabwe's relaunch.

Following on from our previous post on the subject in September, Zimbabwean parastatal and national carrier, Air Zimbabwe (UM)'s plans to resume regional and international flights, have been scuppered due to "boardroom squabbles", reports the government mouthpiece, the ZBC (Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation).

► GAMBIA: Cosmo Airlines to give Gambia Bird, Vueling competition on Barcelona route.

An Airbus A320 (MSN 528 | LY-COM) belonging to Spanish charter airline Cosmo Airlines, on Saturday night, landed in Banjul from Barcelona, Spain, signaling its resumption of service to the Gambian capital, suspended several years ago.

► ZAMBIA: Emirates A330 suffers port engine failure after takeoff from Lusaka, returns safely.

On Sunday 21 October, an Emirates (EK) Airbus A330-200 (MCN 525 |A6-EAP) plying the Lusaka - Dubai route as flight EK714, suffered an uncontained port engine failure, 30 minutes into its flight. The crew promptly shut down the engine and opted to return to Lusaka for a safe landing, contrary to early sensational news reports out of Zambia which claimed "the plane had a tyre burst and slipped into the bush, receiving considerable damage."

■ SUDAN: "Restructuring of Civil Aviation Authority to improve air safety": Abdulaziz

After two disastrous crashes in three months and a perilous aviation safety record, the Sudanese government has announced the restructuring of the country's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in which the regulatory body and the operational body are kept separate from each other, in line with ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) recommendations.