VistaJet, the global business specialising in on-demand access to private jets, is looking to capitalise on growing demand in Africa, pushing up its investment in SA and the rest of the continent, earmarking more long-range aircraft to service the region.
Over the years, SA has become a strong market for private air travel.
According to the Middle East and North Africa Business Aviation Association, the number of business jets operating in Africa is expected to grow by 8% annually over the next five years. Now, there are 418 jets on the continent, with SA having the largest business aircraft fleet, followed by Kenya and Nigeria.
Joburg’s Lanseria airport alone lists 13 different private charter companies that operate through its facilities.
While convenience and time savings have been some of the main drivers for this market, mostly used by corporates, companies in the sector have also taken advantage of the difficulties in intra-Africa travel.
VistaJet, using a model similar to that of Uber, is looking to capitalise on the lack of direct flights between many city pairs in Africa.
In essence, the company offers a charter service that it says eliminates the expense and burden associated with owning a private jet, using a subscription model that charges by flight hours and provides private air travel to and from airports around the world with as little as 24 hours’ notice.
A person flying from Cape Town to Casablanca, Morocco, is unlikely to find a direct flight. Such a journey will see a person having to make one or more stops — typically in Dubai or Qatar — before reaching their destination, an over 18-hour affair.
Corporate travellers
With such a trip meant to take half the time directly, this is the gap that private jet charter companies are exploiting, particularly to corporate travellers that tend to be time starved. As the saying goes, “time is money”.
Expectedly, this sort of travel does not come cheap.
The flight distance from Cape Town to Casablanca is about 7,800km, which translates to about 9-10 hours of flight time. For a light jet, the cost could range from $21,600 to $39,000, while a long-range jet could cost significantly more.
VistaJet’s private charter flights start from $11,000 an hour.
On the lower end of the market, FlySafair — which has primarily operated as a domestic carrier in SA — has ventured out to regional destinations, with direct flights to places like Zanzibar.
VisatJet has operated in the region for 14 years.
According to Philippe Scalabrini, president of Africa and Europe at VistaJet, demand from SA and the region has justified the addition of at least three Bombardier Global 7500 aircraft to service the region, as a way to meet the company’s acclaimed 24-hour notice for an aeroplane.
This aircraft has a range of 14,260km and can fly non-stop for up to 16 hours, meaning direct flights to and from places likes Europe, Asia and the US.
The company says it is seeing the most demand from corporates in the telecom, mining and technology sectors.
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