airlink 3 Airlink’s new logo of a sunbird adorning the full size of the tail being applied to its 50 Embraer jets marks a decisive step in the company’s history.
Previously the bird only flew over the top half of the empennage, inserted into the tail design of South African Airways (SAA), as Airlink had been operating as a franchise under the roof of the national carrier from 1997.
However, in 2020, the partnership ended and a new age has begun. For the first time in its over 20 year history, Airlink competes in its own right and branding. It does so not as an inexperienced start-up, but rather from a position of strength.
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According to the number of flights offered, about 210 a day on 63 routes, with destinations served in 14 countries, it is now Africa’s second-biggest airline after Ethiopian Airlines, ranking ahead of Royal Air Maroc and Kenya Airways. Counting the number of seats offered, it ranks third behind Ethiopian and Egypt Air.
Before the pandemic, Airlink carried 2.2 million passengers in 2019 still as part of SAA’s network, while in 2022, over three million customers are expected. Quite remarkable for a regional carrier with over 50 jets in its fleet all of which are made by Embraer and none has more than 98 seats.
This achievement is in no small part thanks to efficient leadership over the years by its co-founder Rodger Foster. Private shareholders, among them Foster himself owning 23 per cent of shares, ensured that Airlink has been constantly profitable for over two decades until the pandemic hit. Rodger Foster; Credit Airlink One of the reasons is Airlink operates a tailor-made network of destinations that see actual demand, rather than an overblown intercontinental system such as SAA did and serves them with smaller aircraft that are easier to fill.
“Our objective is to be sustainably viable,” says CEO, shareholder and co-founder Rodger Foster in an interview with Airlineratings.com in Johannesburg.
Right now he pursues this objective in a new setting. “Of course it is a challenge, after 30 years, to start as a new brand in our own right, as since 1997 we have been identified as SAA because of our franchise partnership,” says the youthful-looking 67-year-old. “This is a new chapter […]
