Entebbe, Uganda - As Entebbe Airport passenger numbers close to a record 1.5million at the end of the year more airlines are flying in.
For airport users, the competition means prices to some of the key destinations are likely to reduce.
This year alone Uganda has so far attracted new Airlines with Qatar Airways launching daily flights last week and Gulf Air set to launch in December with four flights a week.
This is in addition to Turkish Airlines which launched in October.
Major world destinations like London, New York, Dubai, Mumbai, Beijing and Shanghai can now be reached using many airlines at competitive rates.
Emirates Airlines, British Airways, Kenya Airways, Qatar Airways and KLM all make connections to Dubai at rates of between $420 and $800 depending on the Airline.
Dubai remains a busy connection hub to various world destinations but for some Ugandans it is a business centre.
Mr Ignie Igundura, the CAA's public relations manager, says new airlines like Qatar and Gulf break the dominance that has mostly been enjoyed by Emirates and Turkish Airlines in the Middle East.
"Ticket fares will reduce in the long term as more flights connect to Hong Kong, Beijing, Doha, Dubai and Mumbai as business destinations," Igundura adds.
As the holiday season approaches, promotional offers have started to show up with flights to Europe at a minimum of $244 inclusive of taxes.
This without doubt shows that the players in the market have had to adjust to take advantage of the growing passenger numbers and competition.
Dubai, London, Amsterdam, Nairobi, Istanbul and Addis Ababa are some of the connecting hubs.
Qatar Airways based in Doha and Gulf Air based in Bahrain, are closer connection hubs to the Middle East. For passengers looking to avoid the Dubai congestion, the alternative hubs are not only less congested but also proving to be cheaper.
"There will be further expansion over the coming months that will include additional routes and capacity increases to many other destinations worldwide offering passengers from Uganda even more choice of travel options," says Akbar al-Baker the Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer.
The challenge for Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) however is the huge import bill on aviation fuel that is still higher than that of Kenya and Tanzania. Despite the high aviation fuel, the number of flights in and out of Entebbe have increased to various world destinations as prices get friendlier and with more passengers also flying into the country.
"If Uganda's prospecting oil sector can refine aviation fuel then, we will have to prepare for an influx of airlines since it would be cheaper to re-fuel at Entebbe," Igundura says.
In addition, aviation experts concur that increased airline activity at the airport reduces the unit cost of jet fuel and other airline activities. More airlines lead to increased bulk importation of fuel and hence reduced unit cost of the fuel. "Reduced fuel prices ease the pressure on our ticketing which would be good for our passengers," says Orhan Osubay the Turkish Airlines Uganda Country Manager.
CAA says it is working on master-plan to improve the services at the airport so to match the services with the increased passenger numbers.
The master-plan for the next five years includes increasing the aircraft parking apron, expanding the passenger terminal and also decongesting the Kampala Entebbe road by lobbying for the quick construction of another route to connect the airport to the capital, Kampala.
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