A NEW airline flying between Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg called Velvet Sky is set to lunch in 2011 adding to competition in a sector covered by at least three budget airlines and South African Airways. The website www.velvetsky.co.za proclaims, "The countdown has begun" and advertises positions for pilots and other personnel required by the airline.
It is understood that the financial backers of the project have decided not to divulge their names at this stage, for fear of reputational risk should the project not proceed.
The South African Civil Aviation Authority confirmed yesterday it was evaluating an application for an air operator certificate for a company which it declined to name. The certificate and an air service licence issued by the Air Service Licensing Council are prerequisites for any new operator or airline planning to conduct commercial flights in South Africa. One of the last key activities that still needed to be undertaken for the airline application being evaluated was an emergency evacuation demonstration conducted on the airline’s aircraft.