INTO THE BLUE VELVET SKY
There is a new airline in South Africa – Velvet Sky which purports to be a no frills, low-cost carrier but from those who have already used the service, they have this to say.
Top priorities are personal service, convenience and reliability. The crew in the cockpit are among the most experienced in the business and since the airline first took to the skies last March, it has achieved over 97% of these claims. The airline services major routes between Johannesburg/Cape Town/Durban and regional Port Elizabeth.
The mission of Velvet Sky is to make flying as accessible to families as using the car or bus to go on holiday with their low cost flights. With this in mind, your journey will become part of your holiday and you will still have money to spend at your destination.
This airline will initially be using one Boeing 737-300 to fly the golden triangle of Durban-Johannesburg-Cape Town – the busiest routes in SA.
There’s a great demand for affordable air transport in SA and the time is right for a new player to enter the market. So now is the perfect time to launch a new airline after the recession because there were many aircraft that can be bought cheaply – which puts Velvet Sky ahead of the race as the competitors are renting at the same price they are buying for.
It would appear that business models for airlines are simple to compile and will look attractive to prospective investors. You estimate how much you’ll get for an airline ticket and if the business plan doesn’t work you simply add a few rand here and there. However, the reality is a bit different – with airlines in SA that just can’t afford to charge the ticket prices their business plans call for.
When input costs such as the oil price rise, the company suddenly finds it difficult to absorb the additional costs. However, The CEO Birns says “Velvet Sky has a few experienced people involved in running it, people who know the industry. At least that will help.”
We wish you profitable flying and will watch with interest to see what develops in the future.