ATCL to repatriate Tanzanians stranded in China

Dar es Salaam. Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL) is planning to operate a chartered flight to repatriate Tanzanians, with majority being students stranded in China.

ATCL’s managing director Ladislaus Matindi and Tanzania’s ambassador in China Mbelwa Kairuki yesterday confirmed to The Citizen about the flight which will leave Guangzhou at 1600 hours and land at Dar es Salaam at 2300 hours on July 27 (local time).  

According to Mr Matindi, ATCL will deploy a B787-8 Dreamliner with a seating capacity of 252 passengers.

“Majority of passengers are students who have completed their studies this month,” Ambassador Kairuki said in a WhatsApp text.

Going by the statement, the flight would also from Dar es Salaam to Guangzhou carry four diplomats who got special permission from China Foreign Ministry.

The ticket fare from Guangzhou to Dar es Salaam is $1,216 for adults and $130 for infants (0-2 years), who are not taking a seat.

For passengers, whose destination is Zanzibar, after landing at the Julius Nyerere International Airport (JNIA) have to pay $57 more as the fare from Dar es Salaam to their homes. 

“Since all passengers taking seats shall share equally the cost of the charter flight, there is no child rate for this flight,” said the statement, expounding that children aged from 2-12 years will pay normal adult fare.

Payment can be made through ATCL bank account, the company’s house sales office here in the city and China Travel Service (Beijing) Co.

The statement further explains that the bank remittance should indicate particulars like passport name, passport number, mobile number and email address.

The new development by ATCL to operate the chartered flight from Guangzhou to Dar es Salaam came on Monday this week after the national carrier secured a permit from the China Aviation Administration.

“We shall start the payment process from July 13, 2020 (Tuesday),” reads a part of the statement.

Ambassador Kairuki said a number of airlines had informed the Embassy of Tanzania in China that they were willing to operate repatriation flights with a view to bringing back home Tanzanians living in China.

The flights are set to be operated from the end of July or early August this year.

“The transport costs will depend on the number of passengers to use the chartered flight and will be paid by themselves,” the Embassy of Tanzania in China said in a statement.