THERE is a huge market in
Africa for low-cost airlines.
LCCs could be the future
of connecting countries in
Africa but carriers should
be introduced at the right
time, at the right price and
offer the right product, said
Air Uganda’s head of risk
management and control,
Aziz Rattansey.
A round table discussion
headed by Aziz revealed that,
in some countries, low cost
means low quality. “Although
LCCs should be competitive
in price compared with
legacy carriers, they should
still offer a level of quality.”
AirAsia Berhad gm for India,
Sri Lanka and Bangladesh,
Suresh Nair, said LCCs
in Africa were seen as
stepchildren because they
operated very old aircraft.
“LCCs are badly capitalised,”
he said. “I don’t see a
big player emerging in the
industry at the moment.”
He added that while kulula,
Mango, Skywise and FlySafair
contributed to South Africa’s
status as the largest
domestic air travel market
on the continent, the next
step was to go international.
“But it is difficult for LCCs
to operate outside of their
borders, because obtaining
traffic rights is a headache.”
Sudeep Ghai, managing
partner of Athena Aviation,
added: “Landing rights,
taxes and fees are major
considerations for LCCs
operating in Africa. Nigeria,
for example, has onerous
landing rights and high taxes,
making it almost impossible
to operate a low-cost model
in the region.”
LCCs – the next chapter
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