Responding to increased competition by road transport – and an even more noticeable modal shift to road – Airlink Cargo is tightening up relationships with its customers and highlighting the convenience of its wide range of domestic airfreight routes. “As demand for local distribution increases, there are many more road transporters entering the market with low rates. This is easier for them as their overheads are much lower than those of the larger, more established freight operators,” said marketing and public relations officer for the airline, Lebohang Moya. She added that this provided increased competition for goods movement across all modes. “However, many of the new entrants don’t last long and convenience and strong customer service will always win out. If you cannot meet your clients’ service demands and consistently provide a reliable service, you will lose them. Furthermore, if you do offer a high standard of service, word gets out – it is your most effective advertising tool,” said Moya. She pointed out that Airlink Cargo offered the most convenient airfreight connections to out-of-theway destinations, instead of only concentrating on the major city hubs. This includes the launch of Cape Town as a secondary city hub once the carrier’s Cape Town International to Wonderboom Airport (Pretoria) flights are launched. The inaugural flight is set to depart on August 16. “There will be three daily flights with a cargo carrying capacity of 1.5 tonnes per flight,” she said, noting that the new route – and the Cape Town branch – had a lot of potential for growth. Moya told FTW that she was also in the process of liaising with Airlink Cargo’s general sales agents (GSAs) for feedback on the challenges they faced in selling the airfreight product. “We will address those challenges as best we can,” she commented. CAPTION The Avro RH85 regional jet airliner will be used on the Cape Town to Wonderboom Airport leg.
