JOHANNESBURG - Qatar Airways said it was negotiating to buy a 49 percent stake in Rwanda's state carrier, Reuters news agency reported.
Reuters quoted Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar al Baker as telling reporters in Doha on Wednesday that the company would take its time to negotiate for the RwandAir shareholding.
"We are very tough negotiators, " he said.
According to Reuters, a stake in an African airline would widen the company's reach in one of the world's fastest-growing aviation regions and potentially help it bypass restrictions imposed on it by some Arab states.
Qatar Airways already owns stakes in British Airways-parent International Airlines Group, China Southern, Cathay Pacific and Chile's LATAM Airlines Group.
Qatar Airways said it was negotiating to buy a 49 percent stake in Rwanda's state carrier, Reuters news agency reported. Reuters quoted Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar al Baker as telling reporters in Doha on Wednesday that the company would take its time to negotiate for the RwandAir shareholding.
RwandAir chief executive Yvonne Manzi Makolo, confirmed to Reuters that talks to sell a stake were under way but declined to comment further.
The airline flies to 29 destinations, mostly in Africa, but also to Dubai, Mumbai and Brussels.
According to Reuters, a stake in an African airline would widen the company's reach in one of the world's fastest-growing aviation regions and potentially help it bypass restrictions imposed on it by some Arab states.
FILE PHOTO: A Qatar Airways aircraft takes off at the aircraft builder's headquarters of Airbus in Colomiers near Toulouse. Qatar Airways already owns stakes in British Airways-parent International Airlines Group, China Southern, Cathay Pacific and Chile's LATAM Airlines Group.