Scibe Airlift
Encyclopedia
Scibe Airlift is an airline
based in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
(former Zaire). It operates from N'Djili Airport, Kinshasa.
The airline was on the List of air carriers banned in the European Union, as were all airlines regulated by the authorities in the DRC.
The airline started activities with a single Vickers Viscount
. Due to problems concerning the national airline, Air Zaire
, Scibe Airlift became the first passenger airline in the country. After covering the whole country, it bought a Boeing 707
to fly the European route. In the early 1990s Scibe Airlift was at its peak, flying to many destinations and even leasing its aircraft to European airlines. In this period it was flying DC-10-30 on its Kinshasa (FIH) - Brussels (BRU) route.
The political instability of the country and the poor financial management of the company brought it to an end.
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
based in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
(former Zaire). It operates from N'Djili Airport, Kinshasa.
The airline was on the List of air carriers banned in the European Union, as were all airlines regulated by the authorities in the DRC.
The airline started activities with a single Vickers Viscount
Vickers Viscount
The Vickers Viscount was a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs, making it the first such aircraft to enter service in the world...
. Due to problems concerning the national airline, Air Zaire
Air Zaïre
Air Zaïre was the national airline of the African nation of Zaire. Its head office was located on the grounds of N'djili Airport in Kinshasa.-Air Congo:...
, Scibe Airlift became the first passenger airline in the country. After covering the whole country, it bought a Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
to fly the European route. In the early 1990s Scibe Airlift was at its peak, flying to many destinations and even leasing its aircraft to European airlines. In this period it was flying DC-10-30 on its Kinshasa (FIH) - Brussels (BRU) route.
The political instability of the country and the poor financial management of the company brought it to an end.
Accidents and incidents
- On 13 December 1992 a FokkerFokkerFokker was a Dutch aircraft manufacturer named after its founder, Anthony Fokker. The company operated under several different names, starting out in 1912 in Schwerin, Germany, moving to the Netherlands in 1919....
F-27-400MFokker F27The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner designed and built by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.-Design and development:Design of the Fokker F27 started in the 1950s as a replacement to the successful Douglas DC-3 airliner...
operated by Scibe Airlift Cargo crashed with 37 fatalities about 10 km (6.3 mls) from GomaGomaGoma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the western branch of the Great Rift Valley, and Goma lies only 13 to 18 km due south of the crater of the active... - On 18 January 1994 a Learjet 24Learjet 24|-See also:-References:* Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1976–77. London:Jane's Yearbooks, 1976. ISBN 0-354-00538-3.-External links:**...
D operated by Scibe Airlift Cargo ran out of fuel and crashed on approach on a repositioning flight from Cotonou Airport (COO/DBBB), BeninBeninBenin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
to KinshasaKinshasaKinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
-N'djili Airport (FIH/FZAA) killing two crew. - The 1996 Air Africa crash1996 Air Africa crashThe 1996 Air Africa crash occurred on 8 January 1996 when an overloaded Air Africa Antonov An-32B aircraft, wet leased from Moscow Airways and bound for Kahemba Airport, overshot the runway at N'Dolo Airport in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo after failing to take off...
killed an estimated 297, mostly on the ground. It was a lease from Scibe.
Further reading
- J Rupert, "Zaïre reportedly selling arms to AngolanAngolaAngola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
ex-rebels", The Washington Post, 21 March 1997. - "Chaos am Himmel ueber Afrika", Die Zeit, May 1996.