Air Seychelles declares its 2019 transformation plans

Mar 02, 2019: Air Seychelles has confirmed the changes to its regional network as part of its business transformation plan to further strengthen and safeguard the sustainability of the airline.

As part of the 2019 strategy, there will be daily flights to Johannesburg from June 3; six flights per week to Mumbai from May 12; seasonal flights to Antananarivo, Madagascar for a period of four months from July 3 till October 26; new A320neo aircraft to arrive in July; continuous growth of ground handling and cargo business; and suspension of its Abu Dhabi service effective May 11. 

Jean Weeling-Lee, chairman of Air Seychelles, said, "To sustain Air Seychelles current and future growth it is important that we continue to review the operational and organisational efficiency of the business constantly. In 2018, the airline embarked on a strategic transformation plan to restructure its business and moving forward in 2019, to safeguard the long term profitability and sustainability of the airline we will continue to implement the transformation plan to meet the continuous challenges we face in the environment in which we operate."

The plan, aimed at increasing efficiencies by maximising the airline's resources has been approved by Air Seychelles board of directors and both shareholders, the government of the Republic of Seychelles and Etihad Airways.

Remco Althuis, CEO of Air Seychelles, stated, "After closely monitoring the performance of the Abu Dhabi route and considering all options, Air Seychelles has taken the business decision to suspend its Abu Dhabi service. In the past year, the route has delivered low passenger numbers and we have even noticed weaker travel demand from the UAE, Europe or Asia connecting with the route, making it not a viable ongoing commercial operation for Air Seychelles."

Set to arrive in mid-2019, Air Seychelles will be the first airline to receive A320neo in the Western Indian Ocean to receive one the world's most advanced aircraft. Equipped with 168 seats the new aircraft will enable the airline to increase capacities across its regional network while at the same time delivering significant fuel savings.