Parliament has approved a UGX 145 billion allocation to Uganda Airlines for the 2026/27 financial year, in a move aimed at stabilizing the national carrier amid persistent financial losses and operational challenges.
This was presented by MP Remigio Achia, the deputy chairperson of the Committee on Budget, during a plenary sitting on Friday as part of the Committee’s report on the National Budget estimates.
Achia told Parliament that the allocation is intended to improve operational efficiency and support the airline’s long-term sustainability.
The latest funding comes on the back of a series of heavy government interventions to keep the airline afloat.
Most recently, Parliament approved a supplementary budget of about UGX 422 billion in the 2025/26 financial year specifically to expand Uganda Airlines’ fleet.
The supplementary funding is being used to acquire 10 new aircraft, including two Boeing 787 Dreamliners, a Boeing freighter, and two Airbus planes, alongside leasing arrangements.
The investment is deemed necessary to address fleet shortages that have constrained operations, caused disruptions on key routes, and limited the airline’s ability to expand into long-haul and cargo markets.
Government has previously argued that the airline’s relatively small fleet, currently about seven aircraft, has made it vulnerable to maintenance downtime, delays, and cancellations, sometimes forcing temporary route suspensions or reliance on leased aircraft.
The additional UGX 145 billion allocation now approved for the 2026/27 financial year is, therefore, seen as a complementary measure, intended to ensure that the expanded fleet can be effectively operated, maintained, and monetized.
Uganda Airlines’ financial performance underscores the urgency of such interventions. Since its revival in 2019, the national carrier has consistently recorded losses, with annual deficits running into hundreds of billions of shillings.
While revenues have improved with route expansion, high operational costs, including fuel, maintenance, and staffing, have continued to outpace earnings.
Cumulative losses have now crossed the UGX1 trillion mark, even as government investment in the airline continues to rise.
The situation has raised concerns in Parliament about sustainability, efficiency, and the pace at which the airline can transition to profitability.
Beyond financial losses, the airline has also faced operational headwinds in recent years, including flight disruptions, scheduling challenges, and external shocks such as global aviation instability.
Combined with governance concerns raised in oversight reports, these challenges have reinforced calls for both financial support and institutional reforms.
Despite these difficulties, government maintains that Uganda Airlines is a strategic national asset, which plays a key role in supporting tourism, trade, and regional connectivity, while reducing reliance on foreign airlines.
Lawmakers therefore argue that sustained investment, through both supplementary funding for fleet expansion and the new UGX 145 billion operational allocation, is necessary to reposition the airline for growth.
The Budget Committee report indicates that the new funding will go toward operational costs, maintenance, staffing, and route optimization, ensuring that the airline can fully utilize its growing fleet and improve service reliability.
However, MPs emphasized that continued funding must be matched with stronger financial discipline, improved governance, and a clear roadmap to profitability, to ensure that Uganda Airlines evolves from a subsidy-dependent entity into a self-sustaining national carrier.
Government had earlier projected that Uganda Airlines would require at least five years to break even.
However, persistent challenges, most notably the disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, have derailed this timeline, with the national carrier still posting weak financial performance six years after its revival in 2019.
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