► TANZANIA: fastjet, bidAir Cargo sign freight-haulage deal.

In a departure from the orthodox LCC business model, fastjet (FN) has signed an agreement with freight specialists, BidAir, in which it will carry belly-hold cargo on its fleet of Airbus A319s.  According to the LCC, it intends to carry "dry" cargo such as post and newspapers.

fastjet management expects the deal to provide an additional revenue stream for the airline without compromising its core business and based the move on the results of a recent feasibility study which concluded that the current fastjet operation has sufficient capacity to accommodate the carrying of cargo on its Tanzanian routes.

Referencing Africa's high cost of haulage/kg, Richard Bodin, Chief Commercial Officer of fastjet, said offering this service would create an additional revenue stream for his airline while incurring low additional operating costs.

Vincent Banda, CEO of BidAir Cargo in Tanzania, said: 

"We are proud to be associated with fastjet, and by replicating our business model, which has thus far proven successful in South Africa, Uganda, and Zambia, we are confident that we can provide a quality and reliable service to Tanzanians."

BidAir Cargo is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bidvest Group, an international investment company that is listed on four bourses internationally – the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa and its counterparts in Australia, London and Luxembourg.