fastjet has announce that its inaugural flight between Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and Harare in Zimbabwe took place earlier,  marking the launch of the low-cost airline’s third international route in Africa, and the only direct air link between the two African capital cities.

Forward bookings for the twice-weekly flights are well ahead of management expectations and with the first flights from Zimbabwe already operating to full capacity, fastjet has decided to add a third rotation which will go on sale today.

“fastjet has responded to requests from Zimbabweans and Tanzanians asking for a direct route connecting these two cities with affordable, reliable flights,” said Ed Winter, chief executive of fastjet.

“The flight from Harare was fully booked.

“With future bookings also looking strong we’ve decided to add a third rotation each Thursday which we expect to commence at the end of next month.”