RwandAir’s order for two Dreamliner planes remains on track despite growing concern about the safety of the new aircraft model.

In recent weeks, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which industry analysts consider to be most advanced passenger aircraft yet to be built, has suffered setbacks including fuel leaks and technical issues such as brake problems.

Just last week, Japan’s two main airlines grounded their Dreamliners after one was forced to make an emergency landing because of battery problems.

RwandAir management nonetheless said it will not halt its plans to purchase the aircraft, whose order was placed in 2011.

Teething problems

“We are concerned as an airline operator about the safety reports but ours Dreamliners were not to be delivered till 2015, which gives us sufficient time to learn from others,” John Mirenge, the hief executive officer of RwandAir, told Rwanda Today.

“But like any other new product that is built from scratch, it is no surprise that there are some teething problems.”

The US Federal Aviation Administration is said to have identified errors in the assembly of the fuel line couplings in the Dreamliner.

It warned that these errors could result in fuel leaking onto hot engine parts and starting a fire, cause engine failure or simply seeing the plane run out of fuel.

RwandAir received its second Boeing 737-800 last year, expanding its fleet to seven aircraft and increasing the frequency of its flights, mainly to Dubai and South Africa.

The national carrier signed a $60 million loan agreement with the Eastern and South African Trade and Development Bank (PTA Bank) for the purchase of the two planes, payable in 10 years.

“It will take probably a year or two clearing up those glitches and by the time of delivery we will have perfect machines,” Mr Mirenge said.

However, industry analysts see RwandAir as punching above its weight with its aggressive expansion plans, arguing that ordering the aircrafts may not be cost-effective for Rwanda in the face of cut-throat competition from already established airlines in the region, including Ethiopian Airlines and Kenya Airways.

Boeing aircraft are considered very costly in comparison with Embraer.

“Fleet determination can never be based on cost alone; it is based on where an airline sees its growth areas,” Mr Mirenge said. “We are already ‘suffering’ with the Boeing 737-500 aircraft, especially on the baggage side.

Rapid growth

“We can’t carry all the baggage back once we have a full flight, which, in business terms, is already an indication that we need to buy a bigger plane that can carry people and their bags.”

He also argued that the airline’s recent rapid growth in passenger traffic also informs its decision to purchase aircraft with bigger capacity.

In 2012, the airline transported approximately 270,000 passengers, compared with just 4,000 in 2011.

RwandAir is expected to break even by 2015 as the government continues to revamp its operations, including buying new equipment, hiring new staff and installing new systems.