FJET - LONR29 Nov 2012 14:13
A new era of low cost travel dawned in Africa as Fastjet’s (LON:FAST) inaugural flight took off from left Dar es Salaam's Julius Nyerere airport earlier today.The airbus A319, bound for Mwanza in Tanzania, was almost full to capacity, with over half the passengers paying fares of US$20 a head before taxes and charges.
The maiden flight marks the official start of Fastjet's commercial operations in Africa. A second A319, bound for Kilimanjaro, set off later the same morning.Fastjet’s chief commercial officer, Richard Bodin, said: "Today's flights to Kilimanjaro and Mwanza mark the start of a new, revolutionary, smart way to travel for African people, and our first steps towards becoming a low cost, reliable pan-African airline."Ticket sales for flights on Fastjet's first two routes have been very strong since they started just over two weeks ago. Seats are being secured well in advance by passengers with bookings into February 2013, the company reported.
Broker Daniel Stewart says that the airline has left it a bit late to show a profit for the current year, but it could be quids in next year."If the operator hits its target of having more than 10 A319s in operation in 2013 and is able to achieve a load factor rate of between 70% - 75% we expect the business should show a healthy profit for 2013 which would imply the stock is currently trading on an attractive multiple in our view," Daniel Stewart analyst Michael Campbell said.An early move into profit would be great news for Lonrho (LON:LONR), which owns around two-thirds of Fastjet, Campbell notes.Daniel Stewart has a 'buy' rating on Lonrho, with a 20p
price target.
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