Air Zimbabwe flew an an empty 767 from Johannesburg to Harare on Monday November 12th. The plane which has seats for 203 passengers had flown in the morning to Johannesburg from Harare International with five passengers. There were nine crew aboard including two pilots, a first flight officer, an engineer and six flight attendants.
This was a result of nil marketing by the airline about its resumed services after its latest grounding. Since then, the airline has launched new cheap fares offering round trips to Johannesburg for 420 US dollars .This compares to South Africa Airways 630 US Dollar return flights.
How sustainable are these fares? In the wacky world of Air Zimbabwe, sustainability and logic seem far from important.
Related Posts
Air Zimbabwe Going going gone?
Zimbabwe gets domestic flights
Wonder what kind of service the five passengers got on the flight to Johannesburg?
Confused.. 2 pilots + first flight officer + flight engineer + 6 FAs I’d 10 crew?
Lucky will be very upset he missed out on this. Flying on a 767 as the only passenger has to be the ultimate aspirational trip.
oops..maths wins again…I got the figures from South African new reports eg http://nehandaradio.com/2012/11/15/air-zimbabwe-flies-with-no-passengers-on-board/
Did upgrades clear at the window or at the gate? 😉
Um, perhaps because no one in their right mind would voluntarily pay to go to Zimbabwe?
Stephan, as funny as you think you may be, despite all the headlines Imbabwe continues to be an attractive holiday and business destination. South Africa and Botswana may have the infrastructure and cachet for holiday makers and the like, but those in the know will freely admit they prefer Zimbabwe for its relative safety and hospitality. Yes it’s a banana republic, but dollarisation means there is no more scarcity for those with means. Economically, it is blessed with farmland, abundant precious and industrial minerals, and a populace more educated than any other in Southern Africa (even more than SA on a per capita basis). If one checks the nationality of many blak professionals in South African companies thy will find Zimbabweans are running South Africa’s companies.
Anyways, it’s a long way of saying there are better jokes about the dysfunction of Zimbabwe, otherwise you come off looking like a muppet.
Zimbabwe is actually growing in tourism numbers,. As a country it is stunning with very friendly people – but a very unfriendly regime.
I understand they cleared on board! Apparently the passengers refused to sit in Economy!