The Boeing 787 is finally on its final approach to La Réunion, with two aircraft due for delivery in May and November. An event that Air Austral's management has been waiting for. "The entry into service of the two aircraft comes at a time when we are finally experiencing a stabilised financial environment after several years of restructuring. The new aircraft will in fact offer us an ideal configuration for serving long-haul routes, as it will offer 242 seats compared with 360 seats for the Boeing 777. This isideal capacity on many roads "says company chairman Marie-Joseph Malé.
This strategy will result in the opening of new routes such as the relaunch of the Paris-Mayotte flight at the rate of two frequencies per week initially, probably three eventually. "It's a real demand from both the French in mainland France and Mayotte. It will also enable us to position the island in terms of tourism, even if the development of tourism in Mayotte is still in its infancy", says the Chairman of Air Austral. Mayotte will also be linked to Reunion by three weekly flights in addition to the daily Boeing 787 flights.
Above all, the Boeing 787 will make it possible toimprove the company's Asian network. Air Austral is in fact the only overseas carrier to fly directly to Asia. The airline will thus relaunch its non-stop flight to BangkokUntil now, this service has been operated by Boeing 737-800 with a stopover in Chennai (Madras). "The integration of the Boeing 787 will first of all make it possible to reduce flight time to 5.30/6 hours instead of the current eight; andfinally offer a real long-haul product. We will also continue to offer two non-stop flights a week on the Réunion-Chennai route".
Chennai remains a gateway to the vast Indian market. "Madras represents 13 million inhabitants for the city and its metropolitan region. We have a code share with Air India which gives our passengers access to all destinations on the sub-continent. We are more in the a strategy of consolidation in MadrasI'm not so sure that it's all that productive," explains the Chairman of Air Austral. That's what Air Mauritius is doing, and I'm not sure it's all that productive", explains the Chairman of Air Austral. Discussions have also been initiated with Sri Lankan authorities. but to date, nothing has been decided about possible cooperation on a Réunion-Colombo route.
The company will also position itself on the La Réunion-Canton route by cooperation with Air Madagascar. "This is a code-share flight on an Air Madagascar aircraft, which will operate the Tananarive-St Denis-Canton route.
Air Austral expects further profits for the current financial year. Paris-La Réunion remains the major route and according to Marie-Joseph In Malé, we can now feel the beginnings of a recovery on this route. Traffic forecasts showa slight increaseThis is particularly noticeable during the summer months.
"But we will continue to optimise the line because we're going to find ourselves in overcapacity on this route in the coming months because ofan increase in the range offered by some of our competitors "says the Chairman of Air Austral. "In fact, we are gaining market share mainly through the repositioning of our in-flight product with new generation seating on the Boeing 777 and of course the Boeing 787".
Finally, another area of development revolves around the Vanilla Islands" concept which brings together the islands of the Indian Ocean - Réunion, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mayotte and Seychelles. "We have just signed a development charter for the coordination of inter-island links and the creation of a genuine Vanilla Islands pass, particularly for local residents", says Mr Malé. Ultimately, the charter should result in a real air network and the possibility for passengers to use all the companies in the region as they wish.
