The Board of Directors of Fastjet now formally approved the sale of a 28-percent stake to South Africa’s Solenta Aviation. The decision announced yesterday seals the deal under which Solenta will provide at least three aircraft to Fastjet under a wetlease deal. There is also talk that Solenta may give their new partner access to some of the five AOC’s they hold in African countries.
It was also confirmed that Fastjet’s head office will relocate from London Gatwick to Johannesburg by the end of the first quarter.
The three wetleased Embraer E190’s will allow Fastjet to complete the transition from their previously exclusive Airbus A319 fleet to a more suitable composition, rightsizing their aircrafts on several routes where the A319 proved to be too large.
Fastjet presently operates out of two bases – Dar es Salaam and Harare. In Tanzania the airline does serve four domestic routes, i.e. Kilimanjaro, Mwanza, Mbeya and Zanzibar, while also serving Lusaka, Harare and Johannesburg after dropping Entebbe and Nairobi in early December. From Harare is it serving Johannesburg and Victoria Falls.
