Uganda Airlines has moved to secure long-term capacity by seeking fleet advisers and pressing ahead with dry leases for two Airbus A320-family aircraft, now targeting delivery in February 2026 after a shift from the earlier mid-2025 plan. The state-owned carrier has opened an international tender to hire a consultancy firm that will provide technical, legal, and financial advisory services for the lease process. This step is meant to professionalize selection, sharpen pricing and risk reviews, and keep the process in line with industry standards and local rules.
Lease requirements and rationale
The airline is asking lessors to pitch either A320neo/A321neo aircraft under nine years old or A320ceo/A321ceo up to 15 years old, with lease terms running two to eight years. In practice, this gives Uganda Airlines room to balance price, fuel burn, and delivery timing.
- Neo models: lower fuel costs and longer range.
- Ceo variants: more available and cheaper to place in the near term.
The pursuit of dry leases—where Uganda Airlines supplies its own pilots and cabin crew—marks a clear shift from short-term ACMI (wet lease) cover and is designed to build in-house capacity and control.
Regulatory context and operational shift
Ugandan rules cap ACMI contracts at six months, which:
– Makes long-term planning hard,
– Keeps the airline dependent on outside crews and maintenance providers.
Dry leases enable:
– Deeper training plans,
– Scheduled maintenance oversight,
– Consistent service levels.
The airline extended its ACMI deal with DAT (Danish Air Transport) for an A320-200 through May 2026, with a planned move to a semi-damp setup in the coming months. That bridge keeps high-demand routes covered while Uganda Airlines recruits, trains, and deploys its own crews and engineers on A320-family types.
Important: ACMI terms in Uganda are capped at six months. Dry leases (two to eight years) provide the stability required for training, maintenance planning, and long-term scheduling.
Advisory tender: scope and benefits
The international tender targets a consultancy firm with hands-on experience across:
– Aircraft evaluation,
– Lease negotiation,
– Transaction management.
Scope of advisory services includes:
– Bid design and bid review,
– Risk and compliance checks,
– Contract negotiations with lessors,
– Assessment of total cost of ownership (rent, maintenance reserves, return conditions).
Benefits for Uganda Airlines:
– Clearer total cost of ownership,
– Better maintenance reserve terms,
– Sharper return conditions at lease end,
– Stronger due diligence and fairness in vendor selection.
Funding and government support
The transparency of the tender matters for the public purse. Uganda Airlines is set to benefit from FY 2025/26 government funding as part of a UGX6.92 trillion (USD1.92 billion) national transport infrastructure program. This support helps cover:
– Pre-delivery payments and deposits,
– MRO readiness and startup costs,
– Training and spare parts procurement.
Operational and funding timeline
Key milestones under the current plan:
1. Extend ACMI with DAT to May 2026 (provides cover during transition).
2. Dry-lease one A320-200 and one A321-200 by October 2025.
3. Receive two A320-family aircraft in February 2026.
4. Long-term Airbus order: two A320neos and two A321neos, deliveries not expected before 2031.
This two-track approach—lease now, acquire new-build later—lets the carrier meet near-term demand while planning a modern core fleet for the next decade.
Current fleet (as of September 2025)
| Type | Quantity | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Airbus A330-800neo | 2 | Long-haul/high-capacity |
| CRJ900LR | 4 | Short regional sectors |
| A320-200 (ACMI from DAT) | 1 | Wet-leased, contract extended to May 2026 |
The dry leases will fill the narrowbody gap between CRJ900 regional jets and A330 widebodies.
Operational benefits of A320-family addition
- Common cabins and systems improve crew efficiency.
- Spare-part commonality reduces ground time and improves on-time performance.
- A321 adds seats and range for denser or longer routes without stepping up to a widebody.
- Dry leases allow Uganda Airlines to:
- Align maintenance visits with lease returns,
- Implement structured training and type-ratings,
- Manage spare parts and MRO readiness proactively.
Risk management and adviser role
Fleet advisers will:
– Vet lease proposals and aircraft records,
– Flag maintenance liabilities and hidden risks,
– Negotiate balanced return clauses and shop-visit timing,
– Assess engine variant choices and align with local MRO capability.
Key contract terms to watch:
– Monthly rentals,
– Utilization thresholds,
– Maintenance reserve rates,
– Engine LLP coverage,
– Redelivery conditions.
Well-negotiated lease terms can save millions and reduce end-of-lease surprises.
Market context and choice flexibility
Uganda Airlines’ approach mirrors a regional trend: use dry leases now to secure capacity and await long-delivery new-build slots later. The choice to consider both neo and ceo and both A320 and A321 signals flexibility to react to market availability and pricing.
- Neo under 9 years = higher rent, better fuel performance, more time before heavy checks.
- Ceo up to 15 years = lower rent, possibly nearer major maintenance events.
The two-to-eight year lease window lets the airline tailor lease length to utilization and the 2031 new-build timeline.
Transition management and training
Delaying the broad arrival to February 2026 (from mid-2025) allows:
– Proper simulator scheduling,
– Type-rating completion for pilots,
– Spare parts pools and MRO readiness,
– Lessors time to complete pre-delivery maintenance and records checks.
The semi-damp phase with DAT eases handover by allowing Uganda Airlines staff to assume increasing operational responsibilities before fully dry operation begins.
Government, regulation and local benefits
- The move supports national transport aims without large capital outlays.
- It builds local skills: pilots, cabin crew, engineers, dispatchers.
- Uganda Airlines will coordinate with the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority to meet training, safety, and maintenance standards.
Network and customer impact
- More A320-family aircraft enable higher frequencies and new routes that were previously infeasible.
- A321 capacity helps manage peak demand without moving to a widebody.
- A common narrowbody family should lower unit costs over time and improve schedule reliability.
What stakeholders will watch next
Milestones and indicators:
– Award of the advisory tender,
– Lease signings and contract terms,
– First dry-leased Airbus arrivals (target: October 2025 and February 2026),
– Smooth transition from ACMI to semi-damp and dry operations,
– Progress toward the two A320neo and two A321neo new-build deliveries (not before 2031).
Each milestone will show how effectively the airline shifts from dependence on outside operators to a model built on its own people and assets. The continued DAT ACMI coverage through May 2026 remains a buffer against delivery or training delays while the airline integrates the leased aircraft and prepares for a modern neo fleet in the longer term.
This Article in a Nutshell
Uganda Airlines has opened an international tender seeking technical, legal and financial advisers to support dry leases for two Airbus A320-family aircraft, adjusting delivery expectations to February 2026 from mid-2025. The airline requests neo models under nine years or ceo models up to 15 years, with lease terms of two to eight years to balance cost, fuel burn and timing. This strategy shifts the carrier from short ACMI dependence—capped at six months by Ugandan rules—to longer dry leases that enable training, maintenance oversight and operational control. The carrier extended its ACMI with DAT through May 2026 as a transition measure. Government funding in FY2025/26 as part of a UGX6.92 trillion transport program will support pre-delivery payments, MRO readiness, training and spares. Key milestones include dry-lease arrivals targeted for October 2025, full deliveries by February 2026, and long-term new-build neo deliveries not expected before 2031. Fleet advisers will vet proposals, negotiate return conditions and help manage maintenance liabilities to reduce end-of-lease risks and costs.
