Qatar Airways announced on Tuesday that it has acquired a 25% stake in South African airline Airlink, expanding the state-owned Gulf carrier’s minority stakes in other airlines.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Officer Badr Mohammed Al Meer said the acquisition would allow Qatar Airways to reach passengers travelling to and from regional cities in southern and eastern Africa on Airlink flights, further strengthening Qatar Airways’ strategy for growth and expansion on the continent, a vital component of its economic success.
He added that Qatar Airways’ investment in Airlink demonstrates the importance of the African continent to the future of the group’s business, as “this partnership demonstrates our confidence not only in Airlink, as a resilient, financially strong airline with solid fundamentals and principles, but also in the promising travel market with enormous potential in Africa.”
For his part, Airlink CEO, Rodger Foster, said during the press conference that the presence of Qatar Airways as a “shareholder partner is a strong endorsement of Airlink, and underscores our commitment to the travel markets we operate to, as well as other markets we plan to add to our network.”
It is noteworthy that this investment in Airlink, which operates flights to more than 45 destinations in 15 African countries, contributes to strengthening the codeshare partnership between the two carriers, and comes as part of the expansion plans of the national carrier of the State of Qatar – ranked as the best airline in the world and winner of many international awards – to enhance its operations throughout the African continent.
In a related context, the partnership between Qatar Airways and Airlink seeks to align the loyalty programmes of the two companies / Qatar Airways Privilege Club and Airlink SkyBucks.
It is worth noting that Qatar Airways currently operates flights to 29 African destinations, and the travel market on the continent has witnessed strong growth, as the Qatari carrier has added 9 new destinations in Africa to its growing network of destinations since December 2020.
Airlink is a privately owned domestic airline operating in South Africa.
Qatar Airways also owns minority stakes in International Airlines Group, which owns British Airways, LATAM Airlines, Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific and China Southern Airlines.
