The planes are both Embraer-190s, and can carry up to 100 passengers each. They cost the airline12.5 million US dollars each. Speaking to reporters at Maputo International Airport on Monday, the chairperson of the ports and railway company CFM (which is one of the new shareholders in LAM), Agostinho Langa, said the arrival of the two planes “is the result of undertakings given during the revival of the company”.
“This is a small step for LAM, but it is a great step for the country”, claimed Langa. “LAM owns these aircraft – they are not leased”. Both planes are fully operational, he said.
“They have been certified by the European Union Agency for Aviation Safety (EASA). They were flying in Holland, and all the necessary maintenance has been done”. They will be painted in LAM’s colours in early January, and hen they will begin commercial flights.
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Crews for the Embraers are undergoing training, said Langa. “We have 20 trained pilots”, he added. “12 are in the country, and the others will arrive in the next few days”.
Transport Minister Joao Matlombe told the ceremony “I didn’t come to celebrate because the challenges are enormous, but we recognise with humility the effort that is being made”. Matlombe believed that LAM was on the road to recovery after a period of “technical bankruptcy”. “For the first time sales are higher than expenses”, he said – but accumulated debts were still weighing on the company.
The government’s goal, he said, was to ensure that LAM flights are predictable and accessible and can connect the country’s main cities regularly. “These two aircraft do not solve all the problems”, Matlombe added, “but they will help reduce the difficulties of connections between the provinces”.
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