Why flights are so expensive in South Africa

South Africa’s airlines currently have very limited seat capacity, which is driving up prices in response to high demand.

This issue has been exacerbated by the fact that the country has lost at least five domestic airlines over the last two decades.

A declining industry

Today, only four low-cost air carriers are left in South Africa – Cemair, FlySafair, Lift, and Airlink – which are operating with fewer seats than were available prior to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

The biggest reason for this shortage is the loss of Kulula, which was responsible for 40% of all domestic flights at its peak.

Kulula, which was part of the Comair group, originally launched in 2002 and quickly become one of the largest affordable flight providers in the country with a fleet of 31 aircraft.

This included 23 Boeing 737s, six McDonnell Douglas MD-80s, and two Airbus A320s.

The company barely made it through the Covid lockdowns, but was forced to shut down in mid-2022 when South Africa’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) grounded all its flights over alleged safety concerns.

The shutdown was predicated on three incidents that occurred earlier that year, when two Kulula Boeing 737-800s experienced a mid-air engine shutdown, and a third suffered issues with its landing gear.

Thankfully, all three aircraft were able to land safely.

Comair’s CEO at the time, Glenn Orsmond, pushed back on the CAA’s decision, claiming that the decision was not based on safety but was actually politically motivated.

Orsmond alleged that the CAA was trying to re-direct the public’s attention away from its own gross negligence, as one of its own planes had crashed in 2020, killing three crew members.

Kulula is not the only air carrier that has ceased operations in South Africa since the start of the millennium.

Another major provider was Mango, which was South African Airways’ (SAA) low-cost domestic carrier.

Mango, launched in 2006, had a fleet of 19 aircraft, mostly consisting of Boeing 737-800s, which flew all around South Africa with an additional regional route between Johannesburg and Zanzibar.

It was a successful business for a time, in contrast to the financial struggles of its parent company, but this ultimately did little to save Mango, as it was decided during SAA’s business rescue talks that the low-cost airline should be sold to a private investor as part of a restructuring move.

Mango was subsequently grounded in May 2021 after it failed to pay fees owed to Airports Company South Africa (ACSA).

The Minister of Public Enterprises at the time, Pravin Gordhan, delayed the purchase of Mango but was later forced by a court order to allow a transaction to go ahead.

SAA also delayed paying R399 million to Mango as part of a bailout package approved by parliament in 2021.

Since then, Mango’s private takeover has been in a holding pattern, and it is currently unclear if and when it will make a return.

Three other air carriers that have ceased operations in recent times include Nationwide Airlines, 1time, and Skywise.

Nationwide began as a charter airline but evolved into a commercial service in 1995, becoming a local partner for international logos such as Virgin Atlantic and TAP Air Portugal, and even launching its own long-haul Johannesburg-London route in 2003.

However, the airline’s fleet mostly consisted of older aircraft, and in 2007 one of its Boeing 737-200s lost its entire right engine on takeoff from Cape Town International.

The crew were able to safety bring the craft to an emergency landing, but the incident dealt a massive blow to the company’s public reputation.

An investigation revealed that the engine loss was caused by a fracture in a retaining bolt, and that Nationwide had not inspected the engine mounts every 700 cycles per airworthiness directives.

The airline lost out on that year’s profitable holiday period, and the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent 30% fuel hikes were the final nails in the coffin that led to the decision to liquidate the business.

1time was launched by Afrisource Holdings in 2004 and provided three daily return flights between Cape Town and Johannesburg.

At its peak, it flew to nine domestic locations and owned a one-strong fleet comprising a McDonnell Douglas MD-80.

However, 1time did not have a good reputation for its service or cabin quality, and the air carrier struggled to balance the costs of rising jet fuel prices and maintenance for its older planes, which eventually led to its shutdown in 2012.

Lastly, there’s Skywise, which was a short-lived service that launched in February 2015 and was shut down by November that same year.

Skywise was co-owned by the Mandela family, Irfan Pardesi, and Tabassum Qadir, and only had two Boeing 737s that flew between Cape Town and Joburg.

These flights ran up to eight times per day, but Skywise was barred from operating in October that year for owing fees to ACSA.

It was later reported that Skywise would be grounded if it did not pay its airport charges, which is exactly what happened in November 2015.