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Angola Air Transport
In contrast to other transport methods, air transport
has
grown, partly in response to the difficulties of land
transport.
The state-run national airline, Angola Airlines (Linhas
Aéreas de
Angola--TAAG; formerly known as Transportes Aéreos de
Angola), has
been highly profitable and in 1984 posted pretax profits
of US$12.7
million. The airline benefited from high passenger and
cargo load
on its flights, the low price of jet fuel in Angola, and
the low
wages paid to employees. In 1988 TAAG was planning to
refurbish its
fleet of Boeing 737s and 707s. Because of United States
opposition
to the sale of American aircraft to Angola, TAAG was
expected to
purchase its new aircraft from Airbus Industrie of France.
Domestic service linked Luanda with Benguela, Cabinda,
Huambo,
Lubango, Malanje, Negage, and Soyo. Because of
unrealistically low
fees, demand for domestic flights was heavy. Boarding a
flight,
even with a confirmed reservation, was often problematic,
and
flight schedules were undependable. Although it operated
only
domestic flights before independence, TAAG has since
established an
extensive international route network based at the
country's major
airport at Luanda. TAAG offered service from Luanda to the
African
countries of Zaire, Zambia, Mozambique, Cape Verde, São
Tomé and
Príncipe, and Congo. The company's international routes
served
Havana, Lisbon, Moscow, Paris, and Rome.
Data as of February 1989
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