Senegal seeks partner for new national airline

Senegal has created Air Senegal, a new national airline intended to replace the West African nation's now defunct, heavily indebted carrier Senegal Airlines. Maimouna Ndoye Seck, the minister of tourism and air transport, said the new company was formed with capital of US$69m aimed at making the new airline operational as quickly as possible as it seeks "a strong strategic partner". Senegal state-owned television said Friday that Turkish Airlines was the front-runner to take a stake in Air Senegal. A ministry official confirmed the state had contributed the initial capital. Airlines have long been a fraught business in West Africa though there have been some success stories, including Ivory Coast's flag carrier Air Cote d'Ivoire. <br/>