He explained that the airline stands accused of predatory and excessive pricing on the Johannesburg\u2013Mthatha route between 2012 and 2016.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The airline faces allegations of deliberately lowering prices to unsustainable levels to drive out rival Fly Blue Crane, before being raised again once the competitor had exited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe commission argues this conduct harmed consumers and discouraged new entrants, with losses estimated at up to R108 million,\u201d said Leitch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He noted that the South African airline industry has been deregulated since the early 1990s, making it a complete free-for-all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Leitch, airlines now use a dynamic pricing model where ticket costs vary depending on timing and demand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAirlines can essentially charge as much as they possibly can for the seats, which makes the timing of when you buy the seat really important,\u201d he explained. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf you buy early, it\u2019s cheaper. If you buy at the last minute, when only a few seats are left, it\u2019s more expensive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This deregulated environment, he added, has placed the industry under repeated scrutiny from regulators. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve seen problems with SAA, Comair and others, with Comair even winning more than a billion rand in damages against SAA for abusing the free market. So this is not a new problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leitch said the tribunal faces a difficult challenge in determining whether Airlink\u2019s conduct amounted to predatory pricing or whether it was simply a competitive market practice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why it’s a landmark case for competition law<\/h2>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mthatha-airport-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\u201cAll airlines run special offers. FlySafair, which is now the dominant domestic carrier, is well known for its specials,\u201d Leitch said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOn the one hand, it could just be a way to sell seats and build up routes. On the other hand, it could be pricing designed to keep competitors out of the market. That\u2019s the crux of this case.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He pointed out that Fly Blue Crane, launched by former SAA and SA Express CEO Sizakele Mzimela, attempted to operate on underserved regional routes such as Mthatha, but collapsed amid claims of predatory pricing by Airlink. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe complaint was that fares were pushed so low that Blue Crane couldn\u2019t compete, and then once they exited, prices rose again. That\u2019s the allegation the tribunal must assess,\u201d said Leitch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leitch explained why fares on routes like Johannesburg\u2013Mthatha are higher than on busier city pairs, stressing that operating costs are far greater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t compare Mthatha to Johannesburg, Durban, or Cape Town. Those routes are flown with 180-seat Boeing 737s, whereas Mthatha can only be served with 35-seat aircraft,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe airport hasn\u2019t been approved for larger planes, so the costs are enormously higher. You still need two pilots, full operating expenses, but spread across a fraction of the seats.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leitch also emphasised the importance of Airlink\u2019s service to the region despite the pricing controversy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAirlink has done an enormously important job in providing essential connectivity to Mthatha, with as many as four or five flights daily.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018If they didn\u2019t operate, and no other airline stepped in, Mthatha would slowly decline. It\u2019s 200 kilometres to East London, so without flights, investment, and people simply wouldn\u2019t come,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In his view, this makes the case both complex and significant. \u201cIt\u2019s incredibly difficult to determine what a fair price is in aviation. That\u2019s why this is such a landmark case for competition law.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe tribunal has to decide where the line is between fair market practice and abuse of dominance. And almost regardless of cost, the essential air link to Mthatha must be maintained,\u201d Leitch concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Competition Tribunal is hearing the ongoing case against top South African airline Airlink.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":838516,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9872],"tags":[15416,853,23701],"class_list":["post-838510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-airlink","tag-south-africa","tag-the-competition-tribunal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=838510"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838510\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":838927,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838510\/revisions\/838927"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/838516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=838510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=838510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=838510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\u201cAll airlines run special offers. FlySafair, which is now the dominant domestic carrier, is well known for its specials,\u201d Leitch said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOn the one hand, it could just be a way to sell seats and build up routes. On the other hand, it could be pricing designed to keep competitors out of the market. That\u2019s the crux of this case.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He pointed out that Fly Blue Crane, launched by former SAA and SA Express CEO Sizakele Mzimela, attempted to operate on underserved regional routes such as Mthatha, but collapsed amid claims of predatory pricing by Airlink. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe complaint was that fares were pushed so low that Blue Crane couldn\u2019t compete, and then once they exited, prices rose again. That\u2019s the allegation the tribunal must assess,\u201d said Leitch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leitch explained why fares on routes like Johannesburg\u2013Mthatha are higher than on busier city pairs, stressing that operating costs are far greater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t compare Mthatha to Johannesburg, Durban, or Cape Town. Those routes are flown with 180-seat Boeing 737s, whereas Mthatha can only be served with 35-seat aircraft,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe airport hasn\u2019t been approved for larger planes, so the costs are enormously higher. You still need two pilots, full operating expenses, but spread across a fraction of the seats.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leitch also emphasised the importance of Airlink\u2019s service to the region despite the pricing controversy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAirlink has done an enormously important job in providing essential connectivity to Mthatha, with as many as four or five flights daily.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018If they didn\u2019t operate, and no other airline stepped in, Mthatha would slowly decline. It\u2019s 200 kilometres to East London, so without flights, investment, and people simply wouldn\u2019t come,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In his view, this makes the case both complex and significant. \u201cIt\u2019s incredibly difficult to determine what a fair price is in aviation. That\u2019s why this is such a landmark case for competition law.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe tribunal has to decide where the line is between fair market practice and abuse of dominance. And almost regardless of cost, the essential air link to Mthatha must be maintained,\u201d Leitch concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Competition Tribunal is hearing the ongoing case against top South African airline Airlink.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":838516,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9872],"tags":[15416,853,23701],"class_list":["post-838510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-airlink","tag-south-africa","tag-the-competition-tribunal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=838510"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838510\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":838927,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838510\/revisions\/838927"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/838516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=838510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=838510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=838510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}