BULAWAYO AT LAST FOR FASTJET
(Posted 21st June 2018)
Not entirely unexpected did information come in this afternoon that the Zimbabwe Civil Aviation Authority has granted Fastjet traffic rights between the capital Harare and the country’s second largest city of Bulawayo, aka City of the Kings.
The airline will commence a daily flight effective 02nd of July but has already indicated that once additional aircraft have joined the fleet – one can only speculate if this will be one of the three ATR72-600 aircraft purchased a few months ago – a second daily flight might follow which would allow travelers day trips between the two cities.
Not having Fastjet allowed on the route before had led to sustained criticism towards the CAA for not letting an airline with a proven track record and low fares step up as other, and rather more unreliable airlines, were allowed to stay on the route but lacked the capacity to perform to the public’s expectations.
Only a few days ago had Fastjet announced the upping of flights between Harare and Victoria Falls to 13 a week, i.e. twice a day with the present exception of Saturdays when only one flight will operate.
Flights to Johannesburg were in recent months also upped, making Fastjet a cornerstone of air transport in Zimbabwe, and given their low fares – as long as booked well in advance – will no doubt lift travelers numbers to new heights.
Said Nico Bezuidenhout, CEO of Fastjet: ‘Fastjet has pursued this route designation for several years. We recently re-engaged with Zimbabwean authorities and it has been a very positive process leading up to launching the route. Consequently low-fare connectivity between more domestic destinations has been made possible. Fastjet has invested substantially in the market with very positive outcomes and ongoing support from all stakeholders. It has underlined the fact that Zimbabwe is open for business and we intend to further grow our presence in the country. With our sustainably affordable fares, our commitment to promoting local and inbound tourism and business as well as our network on-time performance of 90%, fastjet has become the airline for everyone. Zimbabwe’s commitment to our investment and the assistance that we have received in realising our business goals have renewed our already high-levels of confidence in this market.
The addition of the Harare Bulawayo route will see Fastjet’s Zimbabwe network grow by almost 90% in terms of frequency and destinations.
