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Pick up the airlines Airbus A320 at Cape Town International Airport (Image: Luke Daniel / Business Insider South Africa)
- Lift will operate its first commercial flight between Johannesburg and Cape Town on Thursday, December 10.
- South Africa’s newest low-cost carrier is co-founded by the former CEO of Kulula.com and is looking to compete against FlySafair, Kulula and Mango.
- The airline will operate three local routes, including Johannesburg, Cape Town and George.
- For more stories, visit www.BusinessInsider.co.za.
South Africa’s newest passenger airline, Lift, will make its maiden flight between Johannesburg and Cape Town on Thursday, December 10, 2020. Following its launch in October via a social media campaign that asked the public to name the airline, Lift seeks to capitalize on the resurgence of air travel in a post-pandemic South Africa.
The airline, which aims to focus on three main routes, Cape Town, Johannesburg and George, was founded by two South Africans with strong backgrounds in the commercial travel industry. Before taking Lift to the skies, Gidon Novick founded one of South Africa’s first low-cost airlines, Kulula.com, in 2001. Novick is also recognized as the creator of the SLOW Lounge Concept, which has been launched as a luxury in -Time rest area in the main international airports in South Africa.
Pick up the airlines Airbus A320 at Cape Town International Airport (Image: Luke Daniel / Business Insider South Africa)
Novick is joined by Jonathan Ayache, who was Uber’s chief operating officer in sub-Saharan Africa.
Together, Novick and Ayache hope to position Lift as an “Uber-thinking” airline operation that can compete with companies like Kulula.com, Mango and FlySafair.
“Many of us have been under pressure due to Covid-19, so the efficiency [at the] cutting edge on our minds, ”said Novick in response to the state of affairs in the air travel industry and the curious timing of Lift’s launch. “There are [also] the opportunity for creativity [and] this is the time when traditional and normal ways of thinking do not necessarily solve the problems we face. “
Lift founders Jonathan Ayache (left) and Gidon Novick (right) (Image: Luke Daniel / Business Insider South Africa)
Lift seeks to gain a foothold in the highly competitive airline market by offering flexible booking options, including free cancellations, if made 24 hours or more in advance, and additional fees for checked baggage. Reserving a seat with extra legroom is also an optional extra that will come at a price.
Roundtrip lift tickets from Johannesburg to Cape Town in January 2021 range from R 1,500 to R500. While these prices are outperformed by South Africa’s most popular low-cost carrier FlySafair, Lift competes well with Mango and Kulula.com.
Lift the interior of the airlines Airbus A320 (Image: Luke Daniel / Business Insider South Africa)
List of names who successfully chose ‘Lift’ as the airline name as part of a social media campaign (Image: Luke Daniel / Business Insider South Africa)
Lift’s fleet consists of three Airbus A320s leased from Global Airways. These aircraft have been in operation since 201. Due to its optimized fleet, Lift claims that their operating costs are approximately 30% lower than those of its main competitors.
Pick up the airlines Airbus A320 at Cape Town International Airport (Image: Luke Daniel / Business Insider South Africa)
Vida e Caffe will provide all drinks and snacks during the flight. The ground and cabin crew suits have been “curated” by online fashion retailer Superbalist.
Pick up the crew members in their outfits, which are “selected” by Superbalist. Image: Instagram
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