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Is Airlink Competing Fairly or Crushing Rivals? Inside South Africa’s Landmark Airline Pricing Battle

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September 30, 2025

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South Africa’s airline industry is no stranger to turbulence, but this time, the drama isn’t happening in the sky. It’s unfolding in the courtroom.

The Competition Tribunal has resumed hearings in a high-stakes case involving Airlink, one of the country’s leading regional airlines. The central question: Did Airlink play fair or did it intentionally price its tickets so low that no competitor could survive?

At the heart of the dispute is a once-vibrant route: Johannesburg to Mthatha. Between 2012 and 2016, Airlink allegedly slashed fares to levels too low to be profitable, right when newcomer Fly Blue Crane entered the market. Once Blue Crane exited, fares reportedly climbed again.

If the Tribunal rules that this was predatory pricing, it could become a defining legal moment for South African aviation.

A Battle of Strategy or Suppression?

Aviation analyst Guy Leitch says this case could “reshape how airlines compete in South Africa.”

According to him, the Competition Commission believes Airlink’s approach cost competitors and consumers up to R108 million, not by charging too much, but by charging too little.

Sounds strange, right? Leitch breaks it down:

“If an airline deliberately sells tickets at a loss just to push rivals out, that’s not competition, that’s entrapment. The Tribunal must decide if that’s what happened here.”

Why Regional Routes Are So Expensive, Even When Seats Look Empty

Many South Africans often ask: Why does it cost more to fly to Mthatha than to Durban or Cape Town?

Leitch explains:

Big cities use large aircraft like the Boeing 737 (±180 seats).
Mthatha can only take 35-seat aircraft due to airport limitations.
Same fuel, same pilots, same costs, but fewer passengers to split the bill.

So, while Airlink is being scrutinised, there’s also recognition that it provides a crucial lifeline to regions like Mthatha, which has no realistic alternative.

“Without Airlink,” Leitch notes, “Mthatha would be isolated. It’s a 200km drive to East London investors simply wouldn’t bother.”

The Bigger Picture, A History of Turbulent Competition

South Africa’s aviation sector has been fully deregulated since the early 1990s, meaning any airline can charge whatever the market allows. This freedom has sparked both innovation and conflict.

Some past battles include:

SAA vs Comair, which ended in Comair winning over R1 billion in damages over abuse of dominance.
Low-cost carriers like FlySafair using flash sales to shake up pricing norms.

So Airlink’s defence is likely to be “everyone does it, it’s just competition.” The Tribunal must now decide whether this was normal price-cutting or a calculated squeeze-out strategy.

South Africans React, “Cheap Flights Are Great… Until They’re Gone”

Public opinion is split.

“If Airlink gave us affordable fares, how is that a bad thing?” – Comment on Facebook
“Yes, but if they kill the competition, they’ll hike prices again, we’ve seen this movie before.” Reply tweet

Many South Africans still remember how Mango vanished, SAA collapsed (twice), and Fly Blue Crane disappeared almost overnight.

Which leads to the big question…

So, What Happens If Airlink Loses?

If the Tribunal finds Airlink guilty of predatory pricing, penalties could be massive, possibly including fines or forced compensation.

But there’s a twist:

Even if punished, South Africa still needs Airlink to keep flying that route. No other carrier has stepped in with the same consistency, running up to five flights a day to Mthatha.

This puts regulators in a difficult spot:
How do you punish a company, without breaking an essential service?