Lesotho's Maluti Sky to end ops in mid-2Q17

Lesotho's Mohahlaula Airlines to add E145s for int'l ops

Seventeen bidders vie for SA Express assets

Seventeen parties have submitted expressions of interest (EOI) regarding the sale of South African Express (EXY, Johannesburg O.R. Tambo) which is currently in provisional liquidation.

In June, the bankrupt carrier's joint provisional liquidators (JPL), Tshwane Trust, called for EOIs covering either the sale of the business in its entirety as a going concern, investment as an equity partner, or a buyer for part or all of the airline's assets.

In addition to four CRJ200ERs, General Electric CF34-3B1 powerplants, spare parts, rotables, tools, and support equipment, the asset group includes SA Express's various licences (operator's licence, AOC, AMO, ATNS, ICASA, etc.).

According to a leaked report seen by SA Tourism Update, Liquidity Services/GoIndustry DoveBid, the asset disposal company appointed by Tshwane Trust, compiled the following dossier on the bids that had been submitted:

• Uprise Africa, a South African equity crowd-funding platform, has partnered trade unions NUMSA and SACCA and plans to purchase SA Express as a going concern by investing ZAR75 million rand (USD4.25 million) in cash plus ZAR175m (USD9.93 million) in...

Editorial Comment: Adjusts SIMGROUP's proposal as per company guidance. - 16.08.2020 - 07:07 UTC

South Africa's Flyfofa Airways eyes Lesotho flights

Lesotho's Maluti Sky begins scheduled pax operations

Maluti Sky (Maseru) has begun scheduled passenger operations as of March 29 having previously operated as a charter airline. Using CRJ200ER ZS-NMJ (cn 7161), leased from parent MGC Airlines (MSU, Maseru), MalutiSky currently operates Maseru-Johannesburg O.R. Tambo 5x weekly, weekdays only.

Sam Matekane, the chairman of the Matekane Group of Companies (MGC), said additional routes to Cape Town International, Port Elizabeth and Durban King Shaka would roll out later in the year. The carrier aims to save local Basotho the hassle of having to use Bloemfontein in South Africa for their air travel needs.

Lesotho is a land-locked mountain kingdom which is completely surrounded by South Africa. As such, until MalutiSky's formal launch, Airlink (South Africa) (4Z, Johannesburg O.R. Tambo) was the only known scheduled operator to serve Maseru offering a 3x daily return service to Johannesburg.