Airlink says the viability of its planned Lanseria-Zimbabwe services will depend on the airport’s operating costs and capacity constraints.
The airline, which requested an amendment to its certificate to operate two daily flights from Lanseria to Harare and one daily flight from Lanseria to Bulawayo, told Travel News that it was assessing whether the routes made commercial sense.
Airlink CEO, de Villiers Engelbrecht, said it saw Lanseria flights as an opportunity to serve the significant growing catchment area in the fast-developing north and west regions of Gauteng.
"Airlink continually looks for new market opportunities. Airlink’s main hub at JNB provides feed or de-feed traffic that supports our network business model,” said Engelbrecht. “However, Johannesburg is a mega-city and opportunities for routes to and from Lanseria, and their potential viability, warrant closer assessment.”
Engelbrecht explained that central to the airline’s evaluation would be the cost of operating flights from Lanseria, including its landing, parking, jet fuel and ground-handling fees as well as the availability of slots, check-in and baggage-handling facilities, office rental rates, staffing and the impact on aircraft and crew schedules and positioning flights.
