ACCRA, IATA welcomes Africa World Airlines as their newest IATA Member in the West Africa Region.

Africa World Airlines (AWA), an indigenous Ghanaian airline, has once again found its way into the IATA register after the one and only Ghana Airways which was registered collapsed some years back.

Africa World Airlines was incorporated on Nov 15, 2010 and received its Air Carrier License (ACL) from Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) in March 2011 with its first flight on Sept 21, 2012.

The principal founder/promoter of the Company TogbeAfede XIV, the Chief of Asogli State and CEO of SAS Finance Group. The shareholders are SAS Finance Group (Ghana), Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) -Ghana, Zhongjia Investment Ltd (China).

The company has in its fleet six (6)modern ERJ 145LR jets with the expectation to receive more and bigger aircraft by the end of the year.

Africa World Airlines operates domestic flights to four (4) cities in Ghana namely Accra, Kumasi, Tamale and Takoradi as well as regional flights to Lagos and Abuja in Nigeria. It is expected that the airline will expand its operations to Liberia, Sierra-Leone and Cote d’Ivoire soon.

In 2013, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) set Sept 15, 2015 deadline for airlines in Africa under its prestigious umbrella to have a quality control Audit- which is the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA)- to satisfy various flight operation standards.

Africa World Airlines was audited from April 27, 2015 to May 1, 2015 and responded to all their findings.

The IOSA certification audit is an internationally recognised and accepted evaluation system designed to access the operational management and control systems of an airline, with emphasis on universally accepted best practices in the Airline Industry.

IOSA uses internationally recognised audit principles and is designed to conduct audits in a standardised and consistent manner.

After gaining IOSA certification, AWA has gone the extra mile to be part of IATA members.

From 57 founding members in 1945, IATA now represents some 275 airlines in over 117 countries. Carrying 83% of the world’s air traffic, IATA members include the world’s leading passenger and cargo airlines.

IATA membership is open to airlines operating scheduled and non-scheduled air services that maintain an IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) registration.

IATA provides a powerful, unified and experienced voice that supports and promotes the interests of its members through.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK