Sad news for tourism as Comair grounds flights

Sad news for tourism as Comair grounds flights

Hosia Mviringi

The Zimbabwean tourism industry is expected to take a knock as one of the most eminent inward passenger carrier, Comair has grounded all flights indefinitely pending recapitalization.
Announcing the decision in Johannesburg on May 31, 2022, Comair, which operates British Airways to Zimbabwe and low cost Khuluka.com on South African domestic routes said that it was obliged to ground all flights effective May 31, 2022 pending successfully securing additional funding.
“We deeply regret the inconvenience this suspension will cause our customers. We did everything we could to avoid it. Comair, the business rescue partners (BRPs) and the lenders are working all out to get the funding in place so that we can resume our normal flight schedule as soon as possible,” said Comair Chief Executive Officer Glenn Orsmond
The temporary exit of Comair from its usual routes presents a challenge for passengers as fares are most likely to rise in response to increased pressure on existing flights and this will not be good for tourists and business travellers some of whom will be looking for budget tourism packages.
Comair’s British Airways became the ice breaker, being one of the very the first international flights to touch down at Victoria Falls International Airport on May 13, 2021 as the international travel began a gradual opening-up following a three-year ban due to Covid-19.
The arrival of British Airways at Victoria Falls then marked a turnaround to the tourism sector as other airlines began to follow suit die to rising confidence.

The Zimbabwean tourism sector has never been the same since then as the sector has continued on a steady recovery path.
It is feared that the suspension of British Airways flights into and around the region will disrupt travel and tourism business as existing airlines struggle to accommodate all it pre-booked passengers. All hope being that cancellations will be minimised.
“Comair regrets to advise that its flights have been voluntarily suspended from June 1, 2022 pending securing funding to resume operations. If your flight has been cancelled, please do not go to the airport unless you have alternative arrangements. Our heartfelt apologies for the inconveniences caused. Once funding is received the airline will commence operations, but under these circumstances the practitioners had to voluntarily suspend all scheduled flights until the funding is confirmed,” said Comair in a statement.
Critics and analysts believe that Comair is in a predicament of its own making as the company operated unrealistically cheap flights especially on the South African domestic market where it’s low cost airline Khulula.com offers one if the cheapest air fares.
They opine that with the rising operational costs on the back of rising fuel prices a failure was imminent.
British Airways is an established brand in Zimbabwe especially when it comes to regional travel and as such it provides an expansive catchment for tourism in the country.