PayGate Takes Off with Mozambique Airlines for Online bookings and Internet Payments
Mozambique Airlines (LAM) on 14 May launched its Direct Internet Sales, enabling passengers to make reservations and buy and receive LAM tickets on the Internet using PayGate. As a leading airline in Africa, LAM’s airline internet booking and online payment solution is part of LAM’s drive for greater efficiency, which also includes investing $100 million in six new aircraft. The new aircraft are much quieter and more fuel-efficient than the Boeings and a saving of 40 per cent in running costs.
According to LAM commercial director, Aderito Macaba, this new online booking service will make ticket purchases easier for LAM’s clients, and the use of PayGate’s online payment system will reduce LAM’s costs. Issuing tickets through the Internet saves four US dollars per ticket, he said. It would also reduce the queues at LAM’s ticket offices.
African carriers, represented by the African Airlines Association, have apparently not escaped the downturn. AFRAA president and LAM Mozambique Airlines chairman Jose Viegas says the world financial crisis will “most certainly hit African airlines during 2009”. Viegas reckons that volumes for airlines bookings in Africa will pick up from the third quarter of 2009. He is also optimistic that the 2010 World Cup will help boost tourism, increasing airline passenger and cargo revenues in South Africa and neighbouring countries. Freight operators expect the African market to grow in coming years and become a source of volume growth for air cargo companies.
Viegas says the commercial aviation is “under pressure” and “shaky”, creating an urgent need for partnerships. Partnerships such as with airline experts PayGate internet payment gateway who have specialised knowledge and expertise in internet payment solutions such as internet credit processing for the airline industry in Africa can save airlines a lot of money in the booking process costs and open up a new ecommerce channel for generating more revenue.
Despite the pressure on the African airline economy, Nigeria’s Afrijet Airlines has signed a Heads of Agreement for the purchase of four ATR 72-500s, in a deal worth US$80 million motivated by the need to ensure the lowest operating costs given the current economic environment. In tandem with this, African airlines are lowering of costs through opening up internet airline booking channels with PayGate.
PayGate through its ease of use and reliability, and understanding of the unique understanding of the requirements of the African continent, is the fastest growing airline internet payment solution in Africa.
Date Created: 2009-06-15 |
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