Air Mauritius

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Air Mauritius Limited, operating as Air Mauritius, is the flag carrier airline of Mauritius.[3] The airline is headquartered at the Air Mauritius Centre in Port Louis, Mauritius. Its main hub is Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport.[4]

The company is the fourth largest carrier in Sub-Saharan Africa,[5] and has an important standing in the European, African, and Indian Ocean region markets; the airline won the “2011 Indian Ocean Leading Airline Prize”, making it the seventh year in a row for it to win the award.[6][7]

History

The company was set up on 14 June 1967 (1967-06-14) by Air France, the BOAC enterprise, and the Government of Mauritius, with a 27.5% stake each; the balance was held by Rogers and Co. Ltd., the general sales agent for Air France and BOAC in Mauritius.[8]

A UK-registered Boeing 707-420 in Air Mauritius livery at Orly Airport in 1978.

In the beginning, the carrier operated international services in conjunction with Air France, Air India and British Airways, which jointly had a 25% holding in Air Mauritius at that time.[9]:1131[10]:41 Until 1972, the company restricted its activities to ground services only; it started flight operations in its own right in August 1972 with a six-seater Piper PA-31 Navajo aircraft leased from Air Madagascar, connecting Mauritius with Rodrigues.[10]:41 The aircraft wore an Air Mauritius decor, but kept a Malagasy registration.[11] In 1973, a wet-leased Vickers VC10 from British Airways enabled the company to launch a long-haul route to London via Nairobi,[10]:41[12]:474 whereas services to Bombay were operated by Air India.[11] The Navajo was replaced with a 16-seater Twin Otter that was acquired in 1975. When an agreement with Air France and British Airways came to an end, a Boeing 707-400 wet-leased from British Airtours helped the airline to start long-haul services in its own right.[11] Long-range operations started on 1 November 1977 (1977-11-01).[9]:1131 A second Twin Otter arrived in 1979.[11]

By April 1980 (1980-04), the company had 414 employees and a fleet of one Boeing 707-420, one Boeing 737-200 and two Twin Otters to serve a route network of passenger and cargo services to Bombay, London, Nairobi, Réunion, Rodrigues, Rome and Tananarive. Ownership of the company had changed to have the government of Mauritius as the major shareholder (42.5%), followed by Rogers & Co. (17.5%), Air France and British Airways (15% each) and Air India (10%).[13] Air Mauritius acquired a second-hand Boeing 707-320B in 1981. It had previously belonged to South African Airways (SAA), and permitted the airline to return the Boeing 707-400 to British Airtours. In November 1981 (1981-11), a joint service between Air Mauritius and Air Madagascar began in the Tananarive–Mauritius–Comoros–Nairobi and Réunion–Mauritius runs, following the lease of an Air Madagascar Boeing 737. During the early 1980s, routes to Durban and Johannesburg were inaugurated using Boeing 707-320B aircraft flown with Air India and British Airways crews. The incorporation of a second aircraft of the type, bought from Luxavia, allowed the carrier to expand the European route network to Rome and Zurich in 1983,[11] whereas Paris was added in the mid-1980s.[14] Leased from SAA, a Boeing 747SP named ″Chateau de Réduit″ entered the fleet in November 1984 (1984-11) and was deployed on services to London.[14] By March 1985 (1985-03), the fleet comprised two Boeing 707-320Bs, a Boeing 737-200, a Boeing 747SP and a Twin Otter.[15] That month, the first of two Bell 206 JetRangers was incorporated.[14] In April, a 46-seater ATR42 was ordered,[16] and Singapore was added to the route network with a weekly service using Boeing 707 equipment. In June that year, Air Mauritius joined the African Airlines Association.[14]

In 1986, a second Boeing 747SP that was also leased from SAA entered the fleet; it was named ″Chateau Mon Plaisir″. The incorporation of this aircraft allowed the carrier to phase out a Boeing 707.[14] In 1987, South African Airways' landing rights on Australian soil were suspended by the Australian government and Qantas ceased its operations in South Africa. There had been an increase in demand from businessmen since that time, as most passengers travelling from South Africa to Australia had to stop at Hong Kong, Taipei or Singapore.[17][18] Given that landing rights in Australia for Air Mauritius had not been approved yet,[17] a Boeing 747SP non-stop service to Hong Kong commenced on 1989-10-29, in cooperation with Cathay Pacific.[14] Flights to Kuala Lumpur had started in May 1988 (1988-05).[14]

An Air Mauritius Boeing 767-200ER on approach to Chek Lap Kok Airport in 2006. The airline received two aircraft of the type in April 1988 (1988-04).[19]

Valued at US$122 million and financed by a group of banks that included Barclays, BNP, Credit Lyonnais and the Spectrum Bank,[20] the company took delivery of two Boeing 767-200ERs in April 1988 (1988-04).[19] These aircraft were named ″City of Port Louis″ and ″City of Curepipe″.[19] One of them set a record-breaking distance for commercial twinjets on 1988-4-18, when it flew non-stop from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Mauritius, covering a distance of almost 9,000 miles (14,000 km) in less than 17 hours.[19][21][22] A contract worth US$8.9 million including spare parts for these two Boeing 767s had been signed a year earlier.[23] Also in 1988, a Boeing 707 was leased from Air Swazi Cargo to operate freighter services, and the first ATR-42 started revenue flights in December, replacing the Twin Otters on inter-island services.[14] A second ATR42 was ordered in September 1989 (1989-09).[24]

By March 1990 (1990-03), the route network included Antananarivo, Bombay, Durban, Geneva, Harare, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London, Moroni, Munich, Nairobi, Paris, Reunion, Rodrigues, Rome, Singapore and Zurich.[25] A new route to Perth was inaugurated in December 1991 (1991-12). Named ″Paille en Queue″ and leased from ILFC, the first Airbus A340-300 entered the fleet in May 1994 (1994-05); following delivery, a Boeing 747SP that was on lease from SAA was returned.[14] The airline became the first in the Southern Hemisphere to fly the A340-300.[26] A second A340-300, named ″Pink Pigeon″ and purchased directly from Airbus, was handed over by the aircraft manufacturer in October. Services to Brussels and Cape Town were launched in July and November that year. Also leased from ILFC and named ″Kestrel″, Air Mauritius' third A340-300 joined the fleet in April 1995 (1995-04).[14] The airline started trading on the Stock Exchange of Mauritius during the year.[27] In 1996, the last Boeing 747SP was sold to Qatar Airways and direct flights to Manchester were launched.[14]

At April 2000 (2000-04), Air Mauritius had 2,000 employees. At this time, the airline had a fleet of five Airbus A340-300s, one ATR42-300, two ATR42-500s and two Boeing 767-200ERs that served a route network including Antananarivo, Brussels, Cape Town, Delhi, Durban, Frankfurt, Geneva, Harare, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London, Mahe Island, Manchester, Maputo, Mauritius, Melbourne, Milan, Mumbai, Munich, Paris, Perth, Rodrigues Island, Rome, Singapore, St Denis de la Reunion, St Pierre de la Reunion, Vienna and Zürich.[27] African medium-haul routes started utilising the Airbus A319 following its delivery in 2001.[28] The A340-300 Enhanced version was ordered by the carrier in mid-2005.[26][29] The A340-300 Enhanced was put on service on the London-Heathrow route in December 2006, soon after delivery.[30] In late 2007, the fleet saw the incorporation of the Airbus A330-200;[31] a second aircraft of the same type was delivered in October 2009 (2009-10).[32]

Corporate affairs

An Air Mauritius Airbus A330-200 on short final to Hong Kong International Airport in 2012. The airline has the Paille-en-Queue, a fish-eating tropical bird, as its symbol,[10]:41 A stylised silhouette of this bird can be seen in the aircraft titles.

Key people

As of May 2015, Arjoon Suddhoo holds the chairman position and Andries Viljoen is the chief executive officer.[33] Sudhdhoo was appointed in March 2015 (2015-03).[34]

Ownership and subsidiaries

In 1995, the company was listed on the stock exchange of Mauritius.[14] As of 31 March 2014, shareholders having more than 5% of direct participation in the airline were Air Mauritius Holdings Ltd. (51%) and the government of Mauritius (8.37%), while other investors held the remaining stake in the company.[1]:24

The carrier is 51% owned by Air Mauritius Holdings Ltd., which is in turn owned in its majority (43.83%) by the Mauritian Government. Air Mauritius' wholly owned subsidiaries are Airmate Ltd., Air Mauritius Holidays Ltd., Air Mauritius Holidays (Pty) Ltd. Australia, Air Mauritius SA (Proprietary) Ltd., Mauritian Holidays Ltd. (UK) and Mauritius Helicopters Ltd.; partly owned subsidiaries are Mauritius Estate Development Corporation Ltd. (93.7%), Pointe Coton Resort Hotel Company Ltd. (54.2%), and Mauritius Shopping Paradise Company Ltd. (41.7%).[1]:162

As of March 2014, Air Mauritius had 2,309 employees.[1]:2

Business trends

The key trends for Air Mauritius over recent years are shown below (as at year ending 31 March):

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
Turnover (EUR€m) 414.2 448.1 445.6 371.7 436.0 453.2 452.1 461.5
Net Profits (EUR€m) -6.7 17.0 -85.5 -6.0 10.3 -29.4 -2.5 8.5
Number of passengers (000s) 1,177 1,311 1,192 1,133 1,295 1,325 1,297 1,330
Passenger load factor (%) 74.6 76.8 74.9 80.6 79.8 77.1 78.9 77.6
Number of aircraft (at year end) 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12
Notes/sources [35] [35] [36] [36] [37] [38] [38] [39]

Headquarters

As of March 2015, Air Mauritius had its headquarters at Air Mauritius Centre in Port Louis, Mauritius.[40]

Destinations

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Main article: Air Mauritius destinations
Air Mauritius Airbus A319 landing at Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport (June 2011)

In September 2015 (2015-09), the carrier signed a cooperation agreement with Air Austral, Air Madagascar, Air Seychelles and Inter Ile Air that established Vanilla Alliance and is aimed at improving air services between the Indian Ocean Commission members.[41]

Codeshare agreements

As of March 2014, Air Mauritius has codeshare agreements with the following companies, which are the actual operators on the routes specified:[1]:46–47

Frequent flyer programme

Air Mauritius' frequent flyer programme is called Kestrelflyer, which offers Silver and Gold accounts.[42]

Fleet

Recent developments and future plans

In July 2014 (2014-07), during the Farnborough Air Show, it was announced Air Mauritius signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus for four Airbus A350-900s, with the option to place additional orders for up to three more aircraft of the type; it was also informed the carrier plans to lease two more of these aircraft.[43][44][45]

Current

An Air Mauritius Airbus A340-300 at Frankfurt Airport in 2011.

As of October 2015, the Air Mauritius fleet consists of the following equipment:[46]

Air Mauritius Fleet
Aircraft In fleet Orders Passengers Notes
J Y Total
Airbus A319-100 1 — 16 108 124
1 — — 132 132
Airbus A330-200 2 — 24 251 275
Airbus A340-300C 4 — 34 264 298
Airbus A340-300E 2 — 266 300
Airbus A350-900 — 4[47] TBA
ATR 72-500 2 — — 72 72
Total 12 4

Aside from the equipment shown above, the airline also has two Bell Jet Ranger helicopters that are used for tour services.[46][48]

Historic

The airline previously operated the following aircraft:[49]

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See also

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References

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Bibliography

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External links

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2
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  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3
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  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 Guttery 1998, p. 124.
  12. ↑
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  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ 14.00 14.01 14.02 14.03 14.04 14.05 14.06 14.07 14.08 14.09 14.10 14.11 Guttery 1998, p. 125. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "FOOTNOTEGuttery1998125" defined multiple times with different content
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 19.4
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  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Archived 17 May 2015 at WebCite
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Archived 24 March 2015 at WebCite
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.|accessdate= 9 June 2015
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.|accessdate= 9 June 2015
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.|accessdate= 9 June 2015
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.|accessdate= 9 June 2015
  39. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.|accessdate= 9 June 2015
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 40.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Archived 17 May 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Archived 11 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  42. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ 46.0 46.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Archived 26 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  48. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  49. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  50. ↑ 50.0 50.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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