{"id":838928,"date":"2025-10-03T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=838928"},"modified":"2025-10-02T16:36:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T14:36:10","slug":"south-african-airline-adding-more-flights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/838928\/south-african-airline-adding-more-flights\/","title":{"rendered":"South African airline adding more flights\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Airlink is expanding its fleet of planes from Brazil\u2019s Embraer, as it looks to add more routes to its line-up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Airlink has concluded its lease agreements with Azorra, formally accepting the first three of ten new E195-E2 jetliners produced by Embraer.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lease agreement sees the US-based Azorra providing the newly-built aircraft to Airlink, which is boosting its current all-Embraer fleet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new aircraft will seat up to 136 passengers in a two-by-two cabin layout, providing additional capacity to better compete on high-density routes such as Johannesburg to Cape Town. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The E195-E2s additional range will also open new route opportunities for the airline <\/strong>to connect more destinations and markets across sub-Saharan Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe integration of the E195-E2s into Airlink\u2019s fleet is an important milestone in the company\u2019s 33-year history and will set it on a new trajectory,\u201d said Airlink CEO, Mr de Villiers Engelbrecht.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn addition to the operational and commercial flexibility the larger and more capable aircraft offer, they will also unlock additional efficiencies and cost savings from the commonalities with our existing E-Jets.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe new E2s and our current E-Jets have very similar flight decks, operating procedures and handling characteristics. This will also ensure a streamlined entry into service.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new aircraft are in the process of being ferried from Embraer\u2019s facilities near S\u00e3o Paulo to Johannesburg via Cape Town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They will enter service with Airlink in December to meet the peak summer holiday season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Airlink is currently complying with the South African Civil Aviation Authority\u2019s process to demonstrate its ability to operate and support the aircraft so that it can be added to the airline\u2019s air operators certificate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the process, Airlink’s pilots, cabin crew, engineering and technical personnel are undergoing training on the E195-E2. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Airlink’s aircraft maintenance facility is also being equipped to support the aircraft and its engines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Big court case for Airlink<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/a>
The new Airlink E195-E2 jetliner<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The new planes arrive during a massive court case facing Airlink, which is accused of engaging in predatory and excessive pricing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week, the Competition Tribunal resumed hearings over allegations that Airlink abused its dominance on the Johannesburg\u2013Mthatha route between 2012 and 2016.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was when new entrant Fly Blue Crane (FBC) briefly competed before exiting the market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aviation expert Guy Leitch said<\/a> the case against Airlink could be a landmark moment for South Africa\u2019s aviation industry. <\/p>\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 noted that FBC, which former SAA CEO Sizakele Mzimela launched, attempted to operate on underserved regional routes, but could not due to claims over 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 noted that fares on routes like Johannesburg\u2013Mthatha are higher than on busier city pairs due to greater operating costs per customer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Due to the Mthatha not being approved for larger planes, the cost of pilots, cabin staff and other necessities is spread over a fraction of the seats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leitch said the tribunal has a hard time determining if Airlink\u2019s conduct amounted to predatory pricing or standard competitive market practice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Airlink is looking to add more routes as it adds a group of new Embraer jets into its fleet. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":838929,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sma_x_autopost_status":"idle","_sma_x_autopost_error":"","_sma_x_post_id":"","_sma_x_attempts":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9876],"tags":[15416,1520,23743,1675],"class_list":["post-838928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-airlink","tag-competition-tribunal","tag-embraer-2","tag-saa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838928","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\/95"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=838928"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838928\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":838945,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838928\/revisions\/838945"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/838929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=838928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=838928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=838928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}