Air Belgium launches flights to Mauritius in December
Starting mid-December, Air Belgium will launch a direct flight between Brussels Airport, Belgium and Mauritius, the airline announced during a press event on Monday. Air Belgium announced the launch of a new destination, Mauritius, in mid-December 2020, from Brussels Airport with 2 weekly flights.
From 15 July, the Belgian airline is expected to resume its scheduled flights from Brussels South Charleroi Airport to Guadeloupe and Martinique islands in the French Antilles. Passengers will have to take a Covid-19 test in the 72 hours before the flight to enter the French overseas territories. Air Belgium is also eyeing flights to one destination in the Dutch Antilles and to several airports in the United States, flights that are scheduled to start in 2021, “but no city already linked with Brussels Airlines”, said Air Belgium CEO Niky Terzakis.
After 2021, the Belgian long-haul airline plans to develop its own fleet and launch many other routes. China won’t be “forgotten” but it will take some time before the airline opens these routes. Airline service to the French Antilles was a success with a “really encouraging” start since December 2019 until the temporary stop due to the current outbreak. Half of the bookings done during the lockdown are for this summer.
The CEO would like to compete with the flights from Paris or Amsterdam, or indirect flights from Brussels (via Emirates’ Dubai hub), and offer a more direct way for travellers to go to La Réunion (a French island located close to Mauritius).Eventually, the airline took the opportunity of the massive grounding to develop its own services, including on-board WiFi, to let passengers enjoy the in-flight entertainment system from their own devices. Furthermore, “itsme”, a mobile app for Belgian citizens to verify their identity online will be used “to simplify check-in and transactions”. Many other ways to pay will be made available in the future, including multiple bank cards for booking, payment by instalments, bank transfer or debit bank cards.
