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Cape Town - Zambian domestic carrier Proflights has launched a new route flying directly into the country's largest National Park - the Kafue National Park. The new route is set to be inaugurated on 1 July this year.
Captain Philip Lemba, Proflight director of government and industry affairs said in a statement that the new addition to the airline’s route network would provide a fast and reliable way for domestic and international tourists to enjoy the world-class safari and wilderness experiences of the park.
He said Proflight would begin operating flights during the dry season, when accessibility and wildlife viewing was at its annual peak, from July 1 to October 31, 2015.
Flights will operate on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays to Chunga. The Lusaka – Chunga flight will leave Lusaka at 11:30, reaching Chunga at 12:45. The Chunga – Lusaka flight will leave at 13:05 and arrive in Lusaka at 14:20.
The schedule was designed to facilitate numerous connections including international outbound connections with Emirates and South African Airways, as well as domestic outbound connections with Lower Zambezi and Livingstone, and domestic inbound connections with Mfuwe and Lower Zambezi.
News of the new service to the remote Busanga Plains was enthusiastically received on Proflight’s Facebook and Twitter pages - with followers expressing their delight the opportunity fly to the park rather than undertake the long journey by road.
Driving to Busanga, which is in the north of the park, can take up to 15 hours to drive by road from Lusaka, and compared with the two-hour flight with Proflight’s twice-weekly scheduled journey from the capital, the new route comes are a much-needed alternative.
The Busanga Plains is a vast mosaic of expansive grassy seasonal floodplains, best known for its excellent lion viewing opportunities.
Unfortunately, however, the Zambian government recently lifted the country’s hunting ban of big cats, allowing the hunting of lions to resume in Zambia for the 2016/2017 season, while that of leopards can start in the 2015/2016 season already.
READ: Zambia lifts ban on big cat trophy hunting
Kafue National Park spans over 22 400 square kilometers and stretches over three provinces in Zambia. It is the second largest park in Africa and is home to over 55 different species of animals.
Johannesburg - Lusaka
Since entering into a code share agreement with RwandAir earlier this year, Proflight passengers can now also travel to Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport.
The Johannesburg - Lusaka flights commenced on 27 March, and are operated three-times-a-week on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays. The flights leave from Johannesburg at 07:15 and arrive in Lusaka at 09:15, and leave Lusaka again at 21:50, arriving in Johannesburg at 23:50.
Estimated fares start at R2 500 for a one-way ticket, including taxes.
Apart from the Johannesburg and Kafue route expansions, Proflights are also adding a route to Kitwe, the second largest city in Zambia after the capital, Lusaka.
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