Page 56 - World Airnews Magazine May 2020 Edition

NEWS DIGITAL

ST HELENA CUT OFF FROM THE

WORLD AS FLIGHTS GROUNDED

By Andrew Curran

four Cessna 208Bs. Airlink flew to 39 destinations around South
Africa, Zambia, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique,
St Helena joins a list of other islands effectively isolated Namibia, Ascension Island, and St Helena.
as its sole air service is suspended. The small British Overseas Last year it made approximately 60,000 flights and carried
Territory in the South Atlantic had a weekly Airlink service from around two million passengers. That breaks down in just over 33
passengers per flight. The airline is proud that it has grown ever
Johannesburg. But Airlink suspended all its flights yesterday, since it first started up in 1992.
leaving St Helena reliant on shipping and charter flights. The flights to St Helena used an Embraer E190. But due to wind
Not that this is anything new to St Helena. The island has shear issues and runway limitations at St Helena, only 76 of the
long made a virtue of its isolation. When the French got sick of 99 available seats were ever filled. Flying time across from South
Napoleon and exiled him to St Helena in 1815, it took ten weeks to Africa was about six hours – so it was quicker than the boat.
ship him there. However, Airlink has moved to suspend all its flights as of
Things have improved slightly these days. St Helena is only five midnight (local time) on 26 March. The flights are suspended
days on a ship from Cape Town. England sends a ship down with through to 20 April. Movement restrictions imposed by the South
mail and supplies every fortnight. St Helena only got its airport in African government made the decision inevitable.
2014, and quite the airport it is too. The 1,950-meter runway juts Airlink Managing Director and Chief Executive, Rodger Foster,
300 meters out into the sea. South Atlantic winds and weather said “We intend to gradually reinstate a new optimised schedule of
combined with the dramatic landscape of the mountainous island services once the lock-down has been lifted. Whilst the restric-
make arriving and departing quite an event. tions are currently intended to last for 21 days, we will take our
A NEW AIRPORT BROUGHT HIGH HOPES cue from the Government and the relevant health authorities. Our
There were high hopes that the new airport would see an influx target date for recommencing operations will be 20 April 2020”
of tourists onto St Helena, helping to prop up the struggling local It’s the big airlines and airports that get most of the attention
economy. But the difficulties of landing at the airport meant that it these days. But it is the smaller outposts like St Helena that are
was only really suitable for smaller aircraft. Airlink, with its fleet of arguably harder hit by this crisis. Most countries can maintain a
Embraers, ended up being the only operator to the island. skeleton air service and have alternative modes of travel available.
Prior to suspending flights, Airlink was the largest independent Once an island, especially an isolated island like St Helena, loses its
regional airline in Southern Africa. It has 53 aircraft, mostly a air link, the situation is particularly grim for local residents, traders,
variety of Embraers, but it also has seven BAe Jetstream 41s and and the local economy. Q

World Airnews | May Extra 2020
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