Air Tanzania recently took delivery of a Boeing 787, which is a big move for the airline, given that they previously just had turboprops. The airline is presently using the 787 to operate domestic flights within Tanzania, but soon hopes to fly the 787 to Mumbai and Guangzhou. I’ll be curious to see when that actually happens, since you’d think they’d want to start selling and marketing the flight.
.@AirTanzania has taken delivery of their first #Boeing 787-8 #Dreamliner. It is the first widebody airplane to join the fleet of 'The Wings of Kilimanjaro'. #avgeek #Africa pic.twitter.com/cmHiJTchP4
— Boeing Airplanes (@BoeingAirplanes) July 8, 2018
Obviously the 787 is a big point of national pride for Tanzania, and the government spent a lot of money on the plane. That’s why I can’t help but find a story by The Citizen (a Tanzanian English news site) about the Air Tanzania 787 to be incredibly enjoyable to read, for a variety of reasons.
One of the main reasons I find this story to be so enjoyable to read is because I think many of us take planes like the 787 for granted nowadays, given that it has been around for almost a decade. However, in Tanzania it’s still quite a novelty.
For example:
Inside the Dreamliner, the cabin crew knows how to be hospitable and friendly to all passengers, making one feel like part of the Dreamliner team from the heart-warming conversation that make a passenger feel at home even if flying in the economy class. Although to some extent, the cabin crew didn’t have that much confidence.
Or this:
The interior design and arrangement can be testified as “stuff from foreign lands” since we are only used to designs that serve as second best, but this is purely and clearly a standard set by the President and the team involved to bring out the snake out of its hole.
Then they mention a few things that are missing on the Dreamliner, which I find to be puzzling:
A few things that are missing on board are the controls button to call on the cabin crew. In case one needs any help. And also, there isn’t any headsets jack hence the entertainment on the screens is not in any way enjoyed.
Do the Air Tanzania 787s really not have headphone jacks and flight attendant call buttons? I can’t imagine that’s the case, that they’d pay for personal televisions but not have headphone jacks.
On the plus side, the sound and lighting are excellent, like a high profile conference call and a chief’s tent:
The lights and sound quality inside the Dreamliner is far better than most planes. The announcements sound clean than a high profile phone call or conference call while the lights bring in the ambiance of a prominent chief’s tent.
Reading this, I can’t help but feel like there are a lot of parallels between this and Marilyn Hagerty’s 2012 review of the long-awaited Olive Garden in Grand Forks.
^^ my bad; the B767-200ER
..."they previously just had turboprops."
They did operate the B767-300ER at one point.
Maybe an octagonal route where they visit all the state capitals and stop for a quick refuel in Darwin before popping off to the dark continent?
I agree a Tanzania to Tasmania route would be really sensible!
I like the Swahili phrase on the tail of the aircraft ''Hapa Kazi Tu'' , under Kilimanjaro which as you know is the famous mountain in Tanzania .
Hapa Kazi Tu means ''Here we only work '' ........... and YES ,I am British and I speak Swahili ,I was raised and educated in Tanzania and Kenya until the age of 18 . Great countries and people . Do visit Tanzania , it is growing as a tourist destination .
Ummm this is how that newspaper spews its propaganda. I remember sitting in DAR and laughing out loud at the articles. (You can tell it’s propaganda, right?)
@Aniljak agreed. But may I suggest a Tanzania - Launceston - Tanzania service? Northern Tasmanians are known for their love of safaris and this plugs that gap in the market. There could even be a midstop in Hobart or Devonport as there is no effective intrastate air service in Tasmania. The Tasmania - Africa market is woefully lacking and I think a 787 service to the apple isle from Africa would present numerous economic opportunities.
@Aniljak I totally agree. In particular there’s a huge safari market here in northern Tasmania and I could see a thrice weekly Tanzania - Launceston - Tanzania service working. They could also have a mid stop in Hobart or Devonport to pick up extra passengers plus capitalise on the lack of intrastate Tasmanian air travel. It’s time the Australia - Africa market was catered for.
Yes, very adorable. Thanks for sharing.
That is so sweet and reminds me of the joy I had on my first flight as a 6-year old.
I was in Tanzania recently. While people are friendly, they have yet to do some work on airport logistics before I would call it ‘adorable’. Never seen such an unorganized chaotic airport. With a few changes and no investment things would be better already.
Would love to see them fly 787 to Australia! There is a big market here for safari tours in africa. Maybe a triangular route Tanzania - Sydney - Melbourne- Tanzania a couple of times per week. Would be very popular with Aussies especially if you could stopover enroute to Europe as tanzania is viewed as being much safer than Kenya, Nigeria or South Africa. Tanzania - Singapore and Tanzania - London would be a great start.
They were probably looking at the ceiling for call buttons a la DH4 and I have yet to see seatback IFE offered with headphone jacks as an option. THey are well hidden sometimes though e.g. on AC's 789 you have to be a contortionist to plug in your headphone jacks in J although the rest of the hard product is outstanding.
Love the innocence!
Will you be reviewing, Lucky? If so, may we have a trip report with similar flourishes - please!!
On a scale from 1 to cute, how cute is the livery of this particular Dreamliner?
Don’t hate on Marilyn, she believes all restaurants need reviews - McDonalds included - similar to your desire to review all international premium class products, even the quirky ones.
She’s even famous enough that she has her own sewage lift station named after her!
Sincerely,
Your token Grand Forks resident
are you going to review Air Tanzania’s 787 biz ?