Mozambique - TTA Airlink

as featured and advertised in the March 2010 issue of Skyways, Airlink's inflight magazine

New Air link from Mozambique

Mozambican carrier TTA (Sociedade de Transporte e Trabalho Aereo) is the second designated Mozambican carrier on the Maputo- Johannesburg route and commenced scheduled air-services between these two important regional centres on Sunday 14 February 2010. TTA operates the route with an Avro RJ85 leased from Airlink, in 83- seat configuration comprising 14 Business and 69 Economy seats.

TTA was established in the 1980s when the then-socialist government took the decision to nationalise its aviation industry and incorporated all fixed wing general assets into the single TTA entity. In 1997, following the ending of the civil war in 1992, TTA was sold to a Mozambican group of private entrepreneurs.

The restriction of regional route rights between Mozambique and South Africa as well as the dominance within the domestic Mozambican market of Linhas Aereas de Mozambique (LAM), the national carrier and the biggest airline in the country, has meant that to date TTA has only been able to operate on the Vilanculos-Johannesburg sector, in a commercial arrangement with South African operator Pelican Air Services.

Good news for Mozambicans
With dual carrier designation between Mozambique and South Africa achieved effectively from November 2009, TTA was looking for a suitable partner with whom to expand its operation. “TTA chose leading regional carrier Airlink as our partner as they represented the best fit with our vision and partnership profile. We had discussions with many potential partners which included large European airlines and were very comfortable in choosing Airlink. In today’s scheduled airline industry there is a requirement not only for a strong financial partner but also one with the extensive technical skills and resources that can assist in delivering a safe and reliable service,” says Alexandre Carreira, who is the Chairman of the TTA Airlink venture.

“TTA Airlink is a Mozambican carrier, we have our roots in Mozambique and the relaxation of the bi-lateral restrictions by our visionary Minister of Transport and his team will allow us to benefit all Mozambicans. It is no secret that scheduled airline capacity between Mozambique and South Africa has been restricted and pricey. We believe that we are going to be able to introduce easier access and quality; competition always does that and is good for everyone. The Mozambican economy is a success story and while the rest of the world has struggled, Mozambique has maintained an annual growth rate of 7%. We believe that this translates to an increase in airtravel requirement of double that and we intend to be the carrier who fills that gap,” adds Alex.

TTA is a private company owned by a group of Mozambican entities which includes the Government of Mozambique. Their partner Airlink is a capable South African-based regional feeder airline currently operating 12 cross-border routes as a part of its 26-city air network. Airlink operates in synergy with South African Airways and its global Star Alliance partners.

Airlink has franchised its brand to the TTA Airlink joint venture, which will be responsible for marketing, selling and administering the service. Airlink will, in addition to taking up a 49% shareholding in the joint venture, be providing its established airline operational and administrative expertise to TTA by way of management and technical support agreements.

“This exciting new regional cooperative venture introduces Maputo in synergy with Airlink’s extensive network and will play an important role in linking up with Airlink’s existing direct services to other Mozambican destinations. We have seen steady growth over the years and with the current industrial initiatives underway in various developing nodes within Mozambique, adding Maputo (from Johannesburg) at this time positions Airlink and its strategic partners as a significant air service provider linking Mozambique to the world, via Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport,” says Rodger Foster, CEO and Managing Director of Airlink.

The Flight Schedule
The TTA Airlink service will provide Mozambicans with convenient connections to the regional and international longhaul flights which depart OR Tambo in the evenings. This will satisfy the oftexpressed needs of the Johannesburgresident South African business person, who wants same-day travel to and from Maputo. With flights departing ORTIA at 06h25 and returning the same day at 18h00, South African businesspeople will be able to maximise their business visits to Maputo.

In the weeks ahead, TTA Airlink will continue to introduce domestic services within Mozambique, operating between Maputo and Tete from 1 March 2010, Beira from 15 March 2010 and Nampula from 1 April 2010. These domestic services will provide in-bound overborder travellers the opportunity for onward connections to and from these important destinations within Mozambique.