Air Austral, facing financial difficulties once again, has reduced its flights to certain destinations in order to “optimize financial profitability.”
The decision was announced over the weekend. While the Reunion Island airline has temporarily suspended some of its flights, it is maintaining service to Mauritius.
In recent weeks, Air Austral has once again been grappling with significant financial troubles, leading the airline to make tough decisions.
Over the weekend, it announced a reduction in its flight schedule to certain destinations due to low passenger numbers and financial concerns.
The airline has decided to temporarily suspend service to certain routes. Flights to the Seychelles, as well as to Tuléar and Fort Dauphin in Madagascar, have been suspended “until further notice.”
However, the popular destinations served by Air Austral will continue to be operated at a high frequency. This includes Mauritius, with an average of three daily flights between Saint-Denis and Plaisance, as well as two weekly flights from Pierrefonds.
The Saint-Denis/Plaisance route will be operated using A220-300 and Boeing 777-300 aircraft, while the Pierrefonds route will be using A220-300 aircraft only. Air Austral also continues its weekly flight to Plaine-Corail, Rodrigues.
The airline will also maintain its service between Reunion Island and Paris, offering up to 12 weekly flights, as well as flights between Mayotte and Paris with up to nine flights per week.
Weekly flights to Bangkok, Mayotte, Moroni (Comoros), Johannesburg (South Africa), and Madagascar remain on the schedule.
Turnaround plan: With Air Austral’s future in question, its shareholders approved a turnaround plan last Thursday. This plan includes “a significant reduction in the workforce” and an injection of 10 million euros. (Rs 500.1 million according to the exchange rate of the day; Ed.)
The Reunion Island airline operates eight aircraft and is 55% owned by the company RunAir, made up of Reunion Island investors, and 44% by Sematra, a mixed-economy company (region, department, Caisse des Dépôts) that was previously 99% owner of the airline.
Air Austral employs around 800 people. The airline has not yet specified how it plans to reduce its workforce. Will it proceed with layoffs or salary reductions? More details are expected to be revealed in the coming days.
The Reunion Island-based airline found itself in financial difficulty after the COVID-19 period, having had to take on debts to stay afloat and operational.
Although flights to most destinations see decent passenger numbers, Air Austral recently faced issues with premature wear of the Pratt & Whitney engines on two of its Airbus A220 aircraft.
These planes were grounded for an extended period, leading to disruptions and additional costs. The airline is now forced to decide between canceling flights or renting aircraft to replace the grounded A220s, without knowing how long this situation will last.
According to the turnaround plan presented on Thursday, Air Austral aims to transport 1.216 million passengers during the 2024-25 fiscal year beginning on April 1. This figure is similar to the number of passengers the airline carried during the 2019-20 fiscal year.
Source: Defi Media
