Fastjet to focus on East and Southern Africa

Low-cost African airline Fastjet (LON:FJET) has decided to put Angola and Ghana, two of its loss-making businesses, on the back burner as part of its review into the legacy Fly540 business.

After much to-ing and fro-ing, the group has decided to focus its efforts on East and Southern Africa, taking two ATR planes operating in Angola and Ghana out of service in the hope of selling them.

While a leased aircraft is still operating in Ghana, the Angolan operation has been temporarily suspended pending the return to service of two leased aircraft.

Further details on the restructuring of both operations will be announced in due course, the company added, but it remains convinced by the opportunities in Angola and Ghana.

Fastjet’s interim chairman and chief executive Ed Winter explained management has been thinking hard about how best to restructure the Fly540 business the company inherited.

He called today’s announcement a “highly significant and very positive development in that process”.

“We are currently focused on expanding the low cost Fastjet network in East and Southern Africa by establishing bases in Zambia, Kenya and South Africa and these plans are progressing well,” Winter said.

“However, our overall vision is to create a pan-African low-cost network and, as such, launching the low cost Fastjet model in both Angola and Ghana remains firmly part of the company’s long-term plans.”