Full members 5 Destination countries 26 Fleet size 46 | Destination airports 89 Annual passengers (M) 2.3 | |
Launch date 21 September 2015; 17 months ago (2015-09-21) | ||
The Vanilla Alliance (French: Alliance Vanille) is an airline alliance formed in September 2015 to improve air connectivity within the Indian Ocean region by strengthening cooperation between the airlines of Indian Ocean Commission members. Ultimately, the alliance wishes to increase tourism, trade, and business ties in the region. The founding members are Air Austral, Air Madagascar, Air Mauritius, Air Seychelles and Int'Air Îles.
Contents
History
In August 2010, Seychelles, Mauritius, Madagascar, the Comoros, Réunion, Mayotte and the Maldives united under the brand "Vanilla Islands" to promote tourism to the entire region.
In 2012 the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) hosted a conference on the state of air travel within the Indian Ocean region. It was determined that the current business model of the airlines was unsustainable and that ticket prices for regional air travel were too high, compared to intra-Europe and intra-Caribbean fares.
From 2–3 May 2013, the IOC held another conference in Mauritius on the problems with regional air travel. In January 2014, the Commission published a plea entitled "Wings of the Indian Ocean", in which it called for a joint strategy on regional air transport and noted the economic benefits it would have. The IOC held another conference in July 2014 on tourism and air travel, after which a committee of airline officials and another of civil aviation authorities were created to form the alliance.
On 20 May 2015, the Council of Ministers of the IOC met in Antananarivo to commit to signing an agreement for the creation of the alliance. The airlines were expected to sign it on 18 June, however this date was postponed due to a strike at Air Madagascar.
On 21 September 2015, founding airlines Air Austral, Air Madagascar, Air Mauritius, Air Seychelles and Int'Air Îles signed the pact in Antananarivo. The signing was attended by Secretary General Jean-Claude de l'Estrac of the Indian Ocean Commission and Malagasy president Hery Rajaonarimampianina.
Goals
The initial goals of the Vanilla Alliance include increased air service between the islands, more attractive fares, and optimisation of codesharing. L'Estrac also suggested the creation of a new low-cost regional airline to attract more tourists.