Airlink increases Embraer capacity, leases three E195s from NAC

South Africa-based regional airline Airlink has signed a lease agreement with Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) for three Embraer E195 aircraft amid capacity volatility in South Africa’s domestic market.

NAC, a leasing firm specializing in regional aircraft, confirmed the execution of the lease agreement in a statement. The deal comes at a time of growing demand for domestic airline capacity in South Africa following the collapse of Comair.

Comair, which ran low-fare airline kulula.com and operated as a franchise partner of British Airways, suspended flights on May 31, 2022, due to a lack of funding. On June 9, 2022, Comair lodged a court application to convert business rescue proceedings into liquidation proceedings.

Prior to its flight suspension, it was estimated that Comair served around 40% of South Africa’s domestic market.