Fastjet
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| Founded | 2011 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commenced operations | 29 November 2012 | |||
| Hubs |
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| Fleet size | 3 | |||
| Destinations | 5 | |||
| Company slogan | Smart travel | |||
| Headquarters | Suite 2C, First Point, Buckingham Gate, Gatwick Airport, United Kingdom | |||
| Key people |
Ed Winter (CEO and Executive Chairman) Angus Saunders (CFO) Stelios Haji-Ioannou (co-founder) | |||
| Website | fastjet.com | |||
Fastjet Plc is a low-cost airline with ambitions to provide a pan-African service. Fastjet aims to deliver the same service as its European low-cost counterparts to the African continent. The airline was initially created with the acquisition of Fly540, an airline operating in East Africa, and flights in Fastjet's own name commenced in November 2012.[1]
Fastjet had been in negotiations to acquire the assets of failed 1time Airline, but those talks were put on hold.[2] Fastjet had entered into a memorandum of understanding to form a joint venture with JetLink Express, but that, too, was put on hold.[3]
History
Initial proposals
While originally thought to be competing with easyJet,[4] it was later claimed by The Daily Telegraph that Fastjet is planned to be a transatlantic long-haul airline.[5]
It was eventually revealed that Fastjet was a proposed low-cost African airline, and that an agreement had been signed with Rubicon Investments.[6]
By June 2012 the plans had become clearer. To start the operations, Rubicon Diversified Investments Plc (later renamed Fastjet Plc) completed the acquisition of Lonrho's airline division for a transaction value of US$85.7m, satisfied by the issue of Rubicon ordinary shares to Lonrho. Key shareholders in the enlarged company would be Lonrho and Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, through his easyGroup Holdings Limited (“easyGroup”). The airline division acquired included the African regional airline Fly 540, operating in Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, which would form the platform for the development of a low cost carrier for Africa, branded ‘Fastjet’ under the terms of the easyGroup brand licence agreement.
Commencement of operations
The airline chose Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, as its first operating base in Africa, with flights from Julius Nyerere International Airport commencing on 29 November 2012. Currently (January 2013) flights operate successfully between Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro, and between Dar es Salaam and Mwanza. Further routes were to be added quickly, both domestically and to other East African destinations,[7] and FastJet said it would move its operation office from Tanzania to Kenya, once it has approval to operate in Kenya.[8] Once established in East Africa, FastJet also had plans to launch in Ghana and Angola, other Fly540 areas of operation, but all these expansion plans appear to have become embroiled in a public dispute between Fastjet and the original Fly540 management regarding outstanding debts and validity of operating licences.[9]
Corporate affairs
Head office
Fastjet Plc has its registered office and head office at Suite 2C in First Point on the grounds of London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, England.[10]
The airline also maintains a head office in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.[11][12]
Shareholders
Current shareholdings (as at May 2013)[13] are:
| Shareholder | Shares | Interest |
|---|---|---|
| Lonrho Plc | 116,033,745 | 36.1% |
| Henderson Global Investors | 15,272,815 | 6.47% |
| Easygroup Holdings Ltd | 17,566,215 | 5.47% |
| Other investors | 172,494,482 | 51.96% |
| Total | 321,367,257 | 100.00% |
Fastjet (FJET:LSE) is traded on the London Stock Exchange Alternative Investment Market (AIM).
Business trends
Fastjet only began trading under its own name on 29 November 2012, and financial results for 2011 are not relevant as the Fly540 business was not acquired until 29 June 2012; financial results below are for Fastjet for the 18 month period ended 31 December 2012. The company and group report in US Dollars.
Because Fastjet continues to run operations in various countries as Fly540, for comparative purposes the table below shows separate operational figures for the original businesses and for the new Fastjet activities (as at year ending 31 December):
| 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnover (US$ m) | n/a | 21.1 | |||
| Profits/Losses after tax (US$ m) | n/a | −55.9 | |||
| Number of employees (average) | 8 | 371 | |||
| Fastjet operations | |||||
| Number of passengers (m) | 0 | 0.03 | 0.37 | ||
| Passenger load factor (%) | - | 78.9* | |||
| Number of aircraft (at year end) | 0 | 3 | 3 | ||
| Fly540 operations | |||||
| Number of passengers (m) | 0.45 | 0.67 | 0.62 | ||
| Passenger load factor (%) | 62.0* | n/a | |||
| Number of aircraft (at year end) | 4 | ||||
| All operations | |||||
| Number of passengers (m) | 0.45 | 0.70 | 0.99 | ||
| Passenger load factor (%) | 62.0* | 71.8* | |||
| Number of aircraft (at year end) | 7 | ||||
| Notes/sources | *Dec only [14] |
*Dec only [14] |
[15] | ||
Destinations
As of February 2014, Fastjet serves the following destinations:[16]
| Base | |
| Future | |
| Terminated route |
Rwanda || align=center|KGL || align=center|HRYR || Kigali International Airport || align=center|[17]| City | Country | IATA | ICAO | Airport | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dar es Salaam |  Tanzania | DAR | HTDA | Julius Nyerere International Airport | [16] |
| Johannesburg |  South Africa | JNB | FAOR | OR Tambo International Airport | [17][18] |
| Kilimanjaro | Tanzania | JRO | HTKJ | Kilimanjaro International Airport | [16] |
| Lusaka |  Zambia | LUN | FLKK | Lusaka International Airport | [19] |
| Mbeya | Tanzania | - | HTGW | Songwe Airport | [20] |
| Mwanza | Tanzania | MWZ | HTMW | Mwanza Airport | [16] |
| Zanzibar | Tanzania | ZNZ | HTZA | Abeid Amani Karume International Airport | [16] |
Cargo
Fastjet has signed an agreement with one of Africa’s largest cargo operators, BidAir Cargo, to carry cargo on its fleet of Airbus A319s. Fastjet has sufficient capacity to accommodate the carrying of cargo on its Tanzanian routes [21]
Fleet
The Fastjet fleet includes the following aircraft as of December 2012:[22][23]
| Aircraft | Total | Orders | Options | Passengers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A319-100 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 156 | ex-Easyjet aircraft |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 145 | ||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0 |
There are plans for further A319s to be acquired as the network expands. The aircraft above are those flying under the Fastjet brand; the Fly540 fleet is shown separately.
References
- ↑ Start of flight operations (in German)
- ↑ "Cheap International Flights For Africa? Fastjet Gains Rights To Offer Flights From Tanzania", International Business Times, 15 June 2013
- ↑ "fastjet settles Fly540 Kenya issues as Jetlink Express goes it alone", ch-aviation, 13 June 2013
- ↑ Fastjet could leave EasyJet feeling queasy, Financial Times, 2011-09-28
- ↑ Stelios's Fastjet to take on long-haul market. The Daily Telegraph.
- ↑ EasyGroup and Rubicon to study Africa airline. Af.reuters.com (5 December 2011).
- ↑ Fastjet tickets go on sale. Easy.com (13 November 2012).
- ↑ FastJet shifts focus to East Africa market with Nairobi hub . businessdailyafrica.com (29 November 2012).
- ↑ "Stock Exchange announcement". 6 February 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
- ↑ "Investor Contacts." (Archive) Fastjet. Retrieved on 7 May 2013. "Registered Office and Head Office fastjet Plc Suite 2C First Point Buckingham Gate Gatwick Airport RH6 0NT"
- ↑ "Contact fastjet." (Archive) Fastjet. Retrieved on 7 May 2013. "fastjet Tanzania Plot No 767/39, Suite No. 1 Samora Avenue Dar es Salaam P.O. Box 38639 Upanga"
- ↑ "Feedback." (Archive) Fastjet. Retrieved on 7 May 2013. "fastjet Head Office Plot No 767/39, Suite No. 1 Samora Avenue P.O. Box 38639 Upanga Dar es Salaam Tanzania"
- ↑ "Fastjet - Shareholders". Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 "Fastjet passenger statistics". Easygroup. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- ↑ "Passenger Statistics for December 2013". Fastjet. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 "Fastjet Destinations". Fastjet. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Budget airline Fastjet gets clearance for African routes". BBC News. 14 June 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ↑ http://www.fastjet.com/us/corporate/investor-news/fastjet-confirms-date-of-first-international-flight
- ↑ "Zambia route launch celebrations!". Fastjet. 1 February 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
- ↑ "fastjet launches new domestic route". Fastjet. 28 August 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
- ↑ "South African upgrades, Fastjet turns to cargo". aircargoworld.com. Retrieved 13 October2013.
- ↑ "Our fleet". Fastjet.com. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
- ↑ "Fastjet fleet details and history". planespotters.net. Retrieved 28 January 2013.
External links
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