2023-05-08 20:09:40
Are we heading towards consolidation in overseas air transport? The idea is not new and it seems to be making a comeback. The daily Le Monde, last week, mentioned a rapprochement between the Reunion company, Air Austral and its West Indian counterparts, Air Caraïbes and Corsair; the merger might give birth to Air Outre-mer, an overseas company.
The idea that airlines serving overseas territories might join forces is coming back to the table; And it is not a hazard. Barely out of the Covid crisis, air transport has to deal with an energy crisis in particular. Tariffs are affected and the principles of territorial continuity, equal rights and unity of citizens, within the Republic, are undermined.
The context is therefore delicate. This situation risks triggering a consolidation movement in the overseas air transport sector, in particular for the smallest and therefore most fragile companies.
This is how Pascal de Izaguirre, Managing Director of Corsair, said he was in favor of a merger between his company, with Air Caraïbes (also positioned on the French West Indies market) and Air Austral (which serves the island of La Reunion), to form Air Outre-mer. According to him, thissuper compagnie ultramarine“would be the solution to problems of critical size and would create synergies and economies of scale.
The objective might be to constitute, alongside Air France, a pole focused on overseas destinations: the West Indies, Guyana and Reunion.
The hypothesis was favored by the Minister Delegate in charge of Overseas, Jean-Francois Carenco, during the presentation of the annual results of Air France, last February.
According to the daily Le Monde, an investment fund would work to found a company. This fund would hold the majority of the capital and would bring together Air Caraïbes, Corsair and Air Austral. The three players would therefore be granted a stake, in proportion to their importance.
In addition to funding problems, the leaders of the aforementioned airlines might come up once morest other obstacles, such as ego or Reunionese patriotism. Indeed, remember, the attempted marriage between Air Austral and Corsair had failed last year.
Case to follow, therefore, keeping a close eye on prices; the reduction in competition has never lowered the prices of air tickets, which have been particularly high in recent months.
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