FACT CHECK: Are Uganda Airlines Cabin Crew Only Banyankore?
- Daniel Lutaaya
- Dec 14, 2025
- 3 min read
A social media user wrote an anecdote claiming that all Uganda Airlines cabin crew encountered over six flights were Banyankore, implying that the national carrier’s cabin crew hiring favours people from the Ankole region.
The statement originated from a December 14, 2025 post on X (formerly Twitter) by user @BushenyiBouy, which described a passenger’s personal experience across six Uganda Airlines flights. The post was widely shared and sparked debate around alleged ethnic bias in recruitment at the national airline.
Our Verdict is that this post is Misleading
What the Evidence Shows
The claim is based entirely on a personal observation from six flights, which is statistically insignificant and cannot support a general conclusion about the ethnic composition of Uganda Airlines’ entire cabin crew workforce.
No official data, audit, or investigative report confirms that Uganda Airlines cabin crew are predominantly or exclusively Banyankore.
Uganda Airlines’ recruitment advertisements and public communications consistently emphasize:
Minimum A-level education
Height and health requirements
English language proficiency
Customer service skills
Ability to work in multicultural and diverse teams
There is no mention of ethnicity or regional background as a hiring criterion.
There is no publicly available source that lists all Uganda Airlines cabin crew or pilots either per flight or as a full roster. Flight manifests and staff deployment records are confidential for privacy and aviation security reasons. Neither Uganda Airlines nor the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) publishes crew manifests.
This makes sweeping ethnic claims impossible to verify and inherently unreliable.
Ugandan pilot Captain Ashaba Faridah replied to the viral tweet, debunking it and further revealing that the reverse of the claim may actually be true.
"I don’t work for the airline but the entire pilot crew is people from the central and North & East. I don’t think they have any westerner among the pilots. As for the air hostesses they might have at most 3 westerners. I don’t like people who lie for no reason." Ashaba said.
Publicly Identifiable Cabin Crew Profiles
While not exhaustive or official, multiple self-reported LinkedIn profiles identify individuals working as Uganda Airlines cabin crew with diverse names, locations, and educational backgrounds. Examples include:
Kanyunyuzi Brenda – Entebbe-based cabin crew
Tyra Margach – Flight Attendant, Entebbe
Vanessa Namazzi – Flight Attendant, Kampala
Doryn Nakawesi – Cabin Crew, Kampala
Aloyojok Faith Sheila – Cabin Crew (A330/CRJ900), Makerere University alum
Annet Tinka – Flight Attendant, Kampala
Jolly Wamala – Cabin Crew, Kampala
Mimison Patience – Air Hostess, based in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Leah Kalanguka - Cabin Crew
Our knowledge of Ugandan names proves that most of these, like Nakawesi, Namazzi, Aloyojok, Wamala and Kalanguka, are not Ankole names and therefore are cabin crew from other parts of Uganda.
One of the most prominent figures on Uganda Airlines' cabin crew is Miss Uganda 2014 Leah Kalanguka, who hails from Busembatya in Iganga. This Further proves that the airline indeed does not only hire Bannyankore for cabin crew roles.
These publicly available profiles contradict the idea of ethnic uniformity and suggest diversity in backgrounds and origins.
The claim that Uganda Airlines cabin crew are “only Banyankore” is misleading. It relies on a limited personal anecdote, ignores the absence of verified data, and contradicts available evidence showing merit-based recruitment and workforce diversity.
There is no credible proof of ethnic exclusivity in Uganda Airlines’ cabin crew hiring practices.
Why This Matters
Ethnic identity is a sensitive issue in Uganda’s public discourse. Claims suggesting tribal dominance in national institutions, especially without evidence, can inflame divisions, undermine public trust, and unfairly damage the reputation of organisations and employees.
Its always the few that want to spread there sense of hatred to the majority..
Hello Daniel,
I am a regular tesveler on Uganda airlines about two flights a month to different destinations. I have not seen such. There is a whole mix of tribes across the country. I have not heard of a western captain or hostesses. It should be a wrong accusation
Gideon
Thank you Mr. Kiwanuka, I appreciate your comment and thanks for reading my article.
I am grateful to this analysis. Thank you, Mr Lutaaya, for sharing information that is able to mitigate the effects of misinformation,moreover on a sensible issue such as tribalism.
I don't blame the "Acholi goddd" for his post, though. He was sharing his observation that, for the 6 flights he took using Uganda Airlines, he never saw any hostess from any other part of the country except Ankole. It isn't misleading at all if his reporting is genuine. THAT WAS HIS OBSERVATION. We would advise him to take more flights and make more observation using a wider base.
But basing on biased minds of Ugandans, of course many may misinterpret his observation to make uninformed generalisations which himself never did.