He is a rock legend and the frontman of Iron Maiden, one of the biggest music bands on the planet. He is one of world’s most storied musicians. He is a pilot, an aviation entrepreneur, a beer brewer, motivational speaker, film scriptwriter, twice-published novelist, radio presenter, TV actor and a world-class fencer. His company Cardiff Aviation has been contracted by the government of Djibouti to revive the East African nation’s flag carrier. Bruce Dickinson, in an exclusive interview with Logistics Update Africa, speaks to Reji John, about his passion for aviation, the plans to revitalize the once-liquidated Air Djibouti and being creative as a multifaceted person.
Djibouti and signing the Mou with Air Djibouti
I am quite interested in Djibouti. I was aware of how strategic it was in terms of its position in Africa geographically. I thought the place itself is quite charming and had a great deal of potential. I had done a lot of flying in West Africa. I delivered the very first aircraft, which was a Boeing 737, flying from Cardiff to Djibouti. Then it went into passenger service. We have moved on now to a point where a lot of things are working very well down there for the airline. We finally got over the initial launch phase.
What is the plan ahead?
The key now is to rationalize the whole set up to target the real growth areas. Obviously freight is important. The plan, in the near future, is to take a 737 freighter down there to redistribute goods that come into the Djibouti sea port to countries around in Africa and the Middle East. Because of its proximity to the global sea trade route we have a crazy situation where aircraft from the UAE are flying into Djibouti empty and taking goods back to the UAE or taking them onwards to Africa. Well, that is very nice for UAE, Djibouti should be doing that.
tailwinds for air cargo in Djibouti
This story is from the September - October 2017 edition of Logistics Update Africa.
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This story is from the September - October 2017 edition of Logistics Update Africa.
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