AIR Côte d’Ivoire (HF) has announced that it has taken delivery of its third Bombardier Q400 from the Canadian manufacturer who is expected to deliver a fourth aircraft by the end of April in line with purchasing contract.

The delivery according to the airline, marked the first step in the process of renewal and reinforcement of the fleet of Air Côte d’Ivoire by the end of 2016, which would include nine aircraft.
The airline stated that negotiations are also ongoing with Airbus for the purchase of five (5) new aircraft including three 3 A319s and two A320s.

It noted that these new aircrafts would gradually replace the rented ones, stressing that they will be equipped with the latest technology and offer exceptional comfort to customers.

Air Cote D’Ivoire currently has eight (8) aircraft consisting of four Airbus A319, one Airbus A320 and three new Bombardier Q400s.

The carrier’s current capital of 25 billion CFA Francs is held by the State of Côte d’Ivoire 65 per cent, Air France 20 per cent and Golden Rod 15 per cent.
A further recapitalization of the airline from 25 to 65 billion CFA capitals is expected and would be effective before the end of January 2016.

BOAD will also enter the capital of Air Côte d’Ivoire. The company intends to launch another increase to more than 100 billion CFA at the end of 2016 in order to acquire substantial resources to support its development.

HF serves 20 cities to date in West and Central Africa with frequent and direct flights on 70 per cent of its network. After two and half years of activity, HF ranks first among the airport Felix Houphouet Boigny operators with over 40 per cent of traffic and a punctuality rate set at 85 per cent.

In 2015, the airline carried more than six hundred thousand (600,000) passengers for a turnover of about 75 billion FCFA.