Safair has announced the news that the Air Services Council (ASLC) has granted FlySafair a domestic air service licence for the operation of domestic scheduled flights. This is in addition to the international and domestic unscheduled licence that it held for almost 50 years, providing aviation services both domestically and internationally.

The airline was initially blocked from starting its operations after two competitors brought an urgent application to interdict the new low cost airline from starting its operations based on it not meeting the 75% domestic ownership requirements.

Since then FlySafair has restructured their shareholding, getting rid of the shareholding which caused the problems and at the same time concluding the largest employee share ownership scheme in the aviation industry, effectively giving its South African employees a 25.14% stake in the company.

Despite FlySafair not having been operational since October 2013, the airline retained the services of all the employees who were hired 10 months ago, by utilising them in Safair’s traditional business of providing backup services to local airlines and also in international charter operations.

FlySafair: 

Top Copyright Photo: Paul Denton/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-4Y0 ZS-JRD (msn 24917) taxies at the Johannesburg base.