PARIS, AMSTELVEEN — After resuming flight operations and acquiring two Airbus A320 aircraft, Air Zimbabwe signed a contract with Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance (AFI KLM E&M) covering component support for these two aircraft.

This is an outcome of the technical and commercial partnership between AFI KLM E&M and South African Airways (SAA) Technical.

The contract includes pool access and per-flight-hour repairs, together with the provision of a main base kit, initially positioned at Johannesburg, and subsequently at Harare airport.

The agreement also covers maintenance and repair of the CFM56-5A and -5B engines powering the two Airbus A320s aircraft.

Fabrice Defrance, AFI KLM E&M senior vice president commercial, said: "The signing of this contract with Air Zimbabwe marks a strengthening of our cooperation with SAA Technical and of our presence on southern Africa's fast-growing market."

Roy L. Chigwena, technical manager of Air Zimbabwe, added: "We appreciated AFI KLM E&M's adaptability, the competitiveness of its engines and component solutions, and the assistance it offered in the particular framework of the resumption of our flight schedule."

Air Zimbabwe is the national airline of Zimbabwe. It succeeded Air Rhodesia in 1980 and operates out of Harare International Airport (HRE) serving a number of domestic and international destinations. The Air Zimbabwe fleet comprises two Boeing 767-200ERs, three Boeing 737-200s, three Xian MA60s, and two Airbus A320s aircraft.