Air Seychelles, the national airline of Seychelles, has had a positive year in 2022, despite the challenges presented by COVID-19 and coming out of administration in November.
The airline’s acting chief executive, Sandy Benoiton, described 2022 as a year of “determination, resilience, and hard work,” with an optimistic outlook for the future. The airline has returned to all its previous markets and added new destinations, such as Almaty in Kazakhstan, thanks to the diversification of its international flying unit, with a strong focus on ACMI and charters.
Air Seychelles has seen an increase of 172 percent in passengers, flying 74,272 passengers on 851 flights in 2022, compared to 27,319 passengers on 361 flights in 2021. The airline’s chartered flights have covered 35 destinations worldwide, including London, Beijing, Bucharest, and Dakar. Johannesburg remains the airline’s most popular market, with Tel Aviv coming in a close second.
The airline’s cargo section has also seen marked improvement, with a 35 percent increase in cargo handled, totaling 10,043 tonnes compared to 7,430 tonnes in 2021. However, the On-Time Performance saw a slight decrease of 2 percent, which the airline attributed to the challenges faced by ground-handling companies due to the pandemic.
In late December 2022, Air Seychelles launched a seasonal route between the central Asian city of Almaty and Seychelles, which is scheduled to run through March 2023. The airline’s A320NEO fleet covered 35 destinations in 2022 through chartered flights carrying passengers across the globe. The airline is expected to release its financial performance for 2022 soon.
Meanwhile, Air Seychelles will lease Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft for a limited time period, from March 29 to April 13, 2023, to support its operations. The airline will operate the aircraft on the following routes:
Mahe Island to Johannesburg (HM061/HM063) on March 31, April 1, April 3, and April 10. Johannesburg to Mahe Island (HM060/HM062) on March 31, April 1, April 4, and April 10Mahe Island to Tel Aviv (HM022) on March 30, April 4-6, April 9, and April 11-13Tel Aviv to Mahe Island (HM021/HM1023/HM1025) on March 29, March 31, April 5-7, April 10, April 12, and April 13.
Air Seychelles continues to demonstrate its commitment to the aviation industry by diversifying its operations and exploring new markets. The airline’s success in 2022 is a testament to its resilience and determination, despite the challenges presented by the pandemic and the administration process.
