The Sunday News
ONLY 18 percent of the anticipated 50 000 potential air travellers managed to secure $1 tickets to travel to destinations of their choice serviced by low cost airline flyafrica which had offered the unique price as part of its first anniversary early this month.
The budget airline scored a first offering lucky customers the chance to buy tickets to various destinations on 2 August at $1 just for an hour as part of celebrating one year in the skies.
However, flyafrica Zimbabwe country manager Mr Matipedza Karase said only 9 000 tickets were sold during the promotion.
He blamed the low uptake of seats to a system service shutdown and a depressed economy especially for Zimbabweans where many consider flying a luxury.
“We did not reach our targeted number of seats because we experienced a service shutdown for about two hours which was as a result of the demand and volume of inquiries.
However it came back up and picked up from where it left off,” said Mr Karase.
He said the promotion time which was initially an hour from 11am to 12 noon was extended to accommodate the service shutdown since a number of people were still queued at the offices waiting for the opportunity to buy the $1 tickets.
“Although we were anticipating a higher turnout, we understand that our economy is not doing well and people do not have disposable income hence every dollar counts,” he said.
Speaking on the high demand experienced during the Heroes holiday, Mr Karase said flyafrica was fully booked throughout the holiday and attributed this upsurge in the number of air travellers to the convenience of airlines.
“It is true that all our flights were fully booked over the holiday period because flying has become a first option for most people as road transportation is more prone to accidents and you can quickly get to wherever you are going by air as compared to any other mode,” said Mr Karase.
Air Zimbabwe public relations manager Ms Shingai Taruvinga Dhliwayo said the national airline had an 80 to 90 percent load factor on all its flights.
“In the aviation industry we celebrate holiday time as this presents us with an opportunity to offer air transport services to holiday makers. This year our load factors were very high and we were happy to be of service to the many travellers who visited our country’s domestic destinations,” she said.
She said in Bulawayo at the Joshua Mqabuko International airport check in time had to be extended due to the multitudes that were yet to be served and to accommodate the numbers of travellers.
