CEO’S OF AIR MADAGASCAR AND AIR AUSTRAL SIGN MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
(Posted 11th April 2017)
The two Indian Ocean airlines, both being the home airlines of Vanilla Islands members Reunion and Madagascar, have taken the next steps towards cementing their recently announced partnership, when the two CEO’s put pen to paper to effect a broad Memorandum of Understanding.
As reported here last month did the Board of Directors of Air Madagascar recommend to the government in Antananarivo to formally confirm Air Austral as their strategic partner after completing and extensive search process which started a year ago and as an intermediate step then confirmed seven airlines on the shortlist.
Besides the airline MOU did also Madagascar’s government, through the Ministers of Transport and Finance sign a deal with Air Austral under which the strategic partnership deal is to be concluded by the end of May.
Air Austral, largely due to its past close cooperation with Air Madagascar but also due to the fact that the airline operates under EASA rules as a French registered carrier, gained the edge over other short listed carriers. The airline union is seen as further affirmation that the initial concept of the tourism cooperation between the Indian Ocean Vanilla islands – the group’s other members are Mauritius, Mayotte, The Comoros and Seychelles – is now too beginning to bear fruits in the field of aviation and very likely expand to trade relations in general as a new bloc.
