With the December 7 general elections approaching, domestic airlines are experiencing a notable increase in passenger traffic as voters finalize travel plans to their home constituencies.
Industry stakeholders are scaling up operations to meet the rising demand, anticipating an even greater surge in bookings as election day draws near. Domestic airlines are also playing a vital role in ensuring the smooth transportation of voters, election officials, and materials during this critical period.
In an interview on Monday, December 2, Captain Kwasi Oteng, Chief Operating Officer of Africa World Airlines, attributed the rise in air traffic to the election season and the approaching festive period. He assured the public that the airline is well-prepared to handle the expected surge in demand.
“The increase in passenger traffic has already started, in the last couple of weeks, we have seen a significant rise in domestic travel around the country. So to manage that, we have actually made adjustments to our commercial schedule. This is something we are actually doing daily.
“With what we have noticed recently, we have actually adjusted the domestic schedule for example, for Tamale. We go there three times a day, we are now increasing that to five times a day and Kumasi presently we’re doing six a day we’re increasing that to eight.”
Captain Oteng also highlighted the airline’s collaboration with the Ghana Airport Company Limited to ensure passenger safety remains uncompromised during this busy period.
“AWA has the highest safety records of operations in Ghana. We take safety very seriously, so as far as the present time versus the time of the elections there’s no change. We have always operated on a safety level and that is one hundred per cent safety.”
Despite the airlines’ preparedness, a key challenge for voters who delay booking their flights lies in the limited operational hours of the Tamale and Kumasi airports, which do not currently provide 24-hour domestic flight services.
