His family confirmed his death and said that the leading aviation industry expert in Tanzania had passed away and will be laid to eternal rest this week at his family home in Kilimanjaro region in northern Tanzania.
The family described Mr. Shirima as “an inspiration and a leader to many,” promising to “forever cherish his life.”
Mr. Shirima was a Tanzania businessman, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He was the Founder and Chairman of Precision Air, Tanzania’s only private airline.
Tanzania President Samia Suluhu Hassan sent a condolence message and described Mr. Shirima as an essential person in Tanzania’s airline business and other social functions.
Precision Air Services management confirmed its chairman’s death through public information on Saturday afternoon.
Mr. Shirima founded Precision Air in 1993, with a twin-engine 5-seater airplane, a Piper Aztec.
Precision Air was incorporated in Tanzania in January 1991 as a private airline and started operations in 1993. At first, it operated as a private charter air transport company, but in November 1993, it changed to offer scheduled flight services to serve the growing tourist market in Tanzania. The airline then extended its wings to most towns in Tanzania and other parts in East Africa including Nairobi, the Kenyan capital.
Operating as the first and competitive private airline in Tanzania, Precision Air managed to dominate Tanzania skies until now, competing with giant and state-owned airlines over the East African skies.
Precision Air started its air services in Arusha city by providing charter planes to fly tourists visiting Northern wildlife parks including Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area with other charter services to Zanzibar.
In 2006, Precision Air became the first Tanzanian airline to pass the IATA Operational Safety Audit.
Growth of customer numbers then attracted the airline to acquire more aircraft and then launched scheduled flights across Tanzania, then Nairobi. In 2003, Kenya Airways acquired 49% shareholding in Precision Air for a cash sum of US$2 million.
The Late Mr. Shirima spoke to eTN on June 15, 2012, then gave an insightful story about aviation and air transport in Africa with challenges facing the African skies. He told eTN that Precision Air was preceded by a crop-dusting company that was formed late in 1986 and when a persistent drought occurred in Tanzania in the early 1990s rendering crop dusting without enough work, an idea to establish a charter company was actualized, and hence, the became the formation of the airline Precision Air.
“This was financed by me from the proceeds of a coffee export business I had been engaged in since [the] early 1980s and partnering with a newly-formed Tanzania Venture Capital Fund at 66% and 33% respectively. That fund was bought out by Kenya Airways in 2003,” he once told eTN.
“Worldwide airlines are in joint ventures, partnerships, buyouts, and alliances. Those who stand alone do not exist anymore, and where they do, they are weak. I wanted Precision Air to continue to exist and be a world-recognized player,” he once said.
