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Kam Air

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Kam Air
کام ایر
IATA ICAO Call sign
RQ KMF KAMGAR
Founded30 July 2003
Operating basesKabul International Airport
Secondary hubsMazar-i-Sharif International Airport
Frequent-flyer programOrange Miles
Fleet size5
Destinations13
HeadquartersKabul, Afghanistan
Key peopleZmarai Kamgar (Founder & Chairman)
Ravil Aksianov (CEO)
Employees800 (2024)
Websitewww.kamair.com

Kam Air is the largest private Afghan airline.[1] Founded in 2003, Kam Air has 5 aircraft and a workforce of over 600 people, operating scheduled domestic passenger services throughout Afghanistan and international services to destinations in Central Asia, South Asia, and the Middle East. Its hub is at Kabul International Airport in the capital Kabul.

History

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Kam Air's head office in Kabul

Foundation and early years

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Kam Air was the first private commercial airline established in Afghanistan by the owner and founder of Kamgar Group, Zamarai Kamgar, an Afghan businessman. Kam Air's Operator Certificate (AOC Nr. 001) was issued in August 2003 by the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation (MoTCA) of Afghanistan. Kam Air was registered with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) three letter airline code, KMF, International Air Transport Association (IATA) two letter code, RQ and financial code 384.

The first flight of Kam Air was operated from Kabul to Herat and Mazar-i-Sharif in November 2003 with a Boeing 727-200, while the first international flight was inaugurated in May 2004 between Kabul and Dubai.

On 25 January 2013, the United States blacklisted Kam Air citing a United States Army investigation that the airline smuggled opium on civilian flights to Tajikistan, an allegation denied by the airline and the Afghan government.[2] The ban was suspended a month later.[3]

Development since 2020

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On 24 February 2021, Kam Air operated Afghanistan's first ever all-female crew flight. The airline's first and so far its only commercial female Afghan pilot, then 22-year-old Mohadese Mirzaee, joined now former Captain Veronica Borysova from Ukraine in piloting the Boeing 737-500 from Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul to Herat. The event made global headlines and was first covered by Josh Cahill and later featured on BBC News, Deutsche Welle and the Business Insider.[4] The flight took 90 minutes.[5][6]

Due to the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, all civilian services in the country were temporarily suspended on 15 August 2021.[7] Kam Air flew some of its planes to Iran to prevent damage during the turmoil.[8] However, domestic flights restarted on 5 September 2021.[9] International flights were also later resumed.[10]

Frequent Flyer Program

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Kam Air's frequent flyer program includes a loyalty membership called the Orange Miles.[11]

Destinations

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As of June 2024, Kam Air serves the following destinations:

Country City Airport Notes Refs
Afghanistan Herat Herat International Airport [12]
Kabul Kabul International Airport Hub [12]
Kandahar Kandahar International Airport
Mazar-i-Sharif Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport [12]
India New Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport [12]
Iran Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport [12]
Pakistan Islamabad Islamabad International Airport [12]
Saudi Arabia Jeddah King Abdulaziz International Airport [12]
Riyadh King Khalid International Airport [12]
Turkey Istanbul Istanbul Airport [12]
United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi Zayed International Airport
Dubai Dubai International Airport [12]
Uzbekistan Tashkent Tashkent International Airport

Codeshare agreements

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Kam Air has codeshares with the following airlines:[13]

Interline partners

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Fleet

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A Kam Air Airbus A340-300 at Beijing Capital International Airport
Kam Air Boeing 737-300 at Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport

Current fleet

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As of June 2024, Kam Air has the following aircraft in its fleet:

Kam Air fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Passengers
Total
Airbus A340-300 3 — 346
296
Boeing 737-300 2 — 143
Total 5

In August 2021, Kam Air sent an unspecified number of its aircraft to Iran for temporary storage amidst safety concerns following the fall of Kabul and the resulting chaos that surrounded the city's airport.[14]

Former fleet

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The airline previously operated the following aircraft:[15]

Accidents and incidents

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  • On 3 February 2005, Kam Air Flight 904, a Boeing 737-200 operated by Phoenix Aviation, flying from Herat International Airport in western Afghanistan, vanished from radar screens on approach to Kabul International Airport in poor weather. The disappearance sparked a massive Afghan army search operation for the 96 passengers and eight crew. The wreckage of the plane was found on 5 February 2005 in the mountains east of Kabul. All 104 people aboard were killed.[16]
  • On 11 August 2010, Douglas DC-8-63F YA-VIC suffered a tailstrike on take-off from Manston Airport, United Kingdom, destroying an approach light.[17] The aircraft was operating an international cargo flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina, via the Cape Verde Islands. The incident was caused by the aircraft being 25,700 lb (11,700 kg) overweight due to excess fuel load and misestimating of cargo mass. After being informed of the mishap, the crew continued to Cape Verde. An inspection there confirmed the tailstrike, though analysis of the strike indicator showed the plane was still safe. The incident was investigated by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch, which made various safety recommendations. Kam Air was subsequently banned from operating within the European Union. The three crew involved were also dismissed, and Kam Air announced that it would withdraw its two DC-8s from service.[18]
  • In January 2018, Kam Air reported that nine staff members were killed in a Taliban attack on a hotel in Kabul – seven Ukrainian employees and two Kam air employees from Venezuela.[19] Kam Air had rented 50 rooms for their foreign staff at the hotel, described as one of Kabul's "most heavily guarded."[20] Five were pilots, and four were crew members.[21] Afterwards, over 50 of the airline's foreign workers left the country, and by 26 January, five of its nine aircraft sat idle due to lack of staffing.[20] A large number of daily flights were also being canceled for that reason.[22]

References

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  1. ^ "Afghanistan aviation market: Ariana to renew fleet and resume growth, despite intense competition". CAPA - Centre for Aviation. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  2. ^ "US blacklists Afghan airline accused of smuggling opium". BBC News. 25 January 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  3. ^ "Kam air row: US suspends ban on Afghan airline". BBC News. 25 February 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  4. ^ "لومړي ځل افغان مېرمنو د الوتنې ټولې چارې ترسره کړې - BBC News پښتو". BBC News پښتو.
  5. ^ Foster, Brent (27 February 2021). "Kam Air All-women-crewed Flight Sets Precedent for Afghan Gender Equality". Airways Magazine. Archived from the original on 27 February 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  6. ^ Pallini, Thomas. "An airline in Afghanistan says it just flew the country's first flight with an all-female crew — here's what it was like onboard". Business Insider. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  7. ^ n.a. (15 August 2021). "Commercial flights to Afghanistan suspended". Ch Aviation.
  8. ^ Dudley, Dominic (26 August 2021). "Afghan Airline Seeks Refuge In Iran For Its Planes". Forbes.
  9. ^ Abdullah, Syed (25 September 2021). "Pakistan allows Afghan airline Kam to operate 3 flights". Daily Times. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  10. ^ "Kam Air to resume flights between Kabul and Tashkent". 12 December 2021.
  11. ^ "Orange Miles FAQs". www.kamair.com. Archived from the original on 19 August 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Plan your travel with Kam Air". Archived from the original on 21 January 2024. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  13. ^ "Kam Air profile". CAPA. Retrieved 10 September 2019.
  14. ^ "Afghanistan's Kam Air sends passenger planes to Iran amid Kabul chaos -Iranian media". 26 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  15. ^ "Kam Air Fleet Details and History".
  16. ^ Harro Ranter (3 February 2005). "ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 737-242 EX-037 Kabul". Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  17. ^ Hradecky, Simon (12 May 2011). "Report: Kam Air DC86 at Manston on Aug 11th 2010, tail strike on takeoff". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
  18. ^ "YA-VIC" (PDF). Air Accidents Investigation Branch. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
  19. ^ "Afghan airline struggles after foreign staff killed in hotel raid". Reuters. 24 January 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  20. ^ a b "Grounded and Gutted, Main Afghan Airline Struggles After Taliban Attack". The New York Times. 26 January 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  21. ^ "Kam Air Left Reeling by Deadly Kabul Hotel Attack". Gulf Times. 22 January 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  22. ^ "Afghanistan's Kam Air struggles to stay afloat after deadly Kabul attack". Arab News. 1 February 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
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Media related to Kam Air at Wikimedia Commons

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