Eswatini Airlink was a

regional airline A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North ...

based in

Matsapha Matsapha is a town in central Eswatini. The Matsapha urban boundary is defined in the Urban Government Act of 1969, as amended in 2012, and covers an area of approximately . Matsapha was established as an industrial park in 1965 and was officially ...

Eswatini Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...

, and was the flag carrier of that country.

History

Eswatini Airlink was formed as a joint venture company between the Swaziland Government (60%) and

Airlink Airlink is an airline based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Its main business is to provide services between smaller, under-served towns and larger hub airports. It has since expanded to offer flights on larger, mainline routes. The airline has ...

(40%) to take over operations from

Royal Swazi National Airways Royal Swazi National Airways Corporation was the national airline of the Kingdom of Swaziland. Headquartered in Mbabane with its operational base at Matsapha Airport near Manzini, the airline was founded in 1978. The company still exists, since ...

Corporation (RSNAC), the previous flag carrier of Eswatini. Swaziland Airlink started operations in July 1999 with a leased

Fokker F28 The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a twin-engined, short-range jet airliner designed and built by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. Following the Fokker F27 Friendship, an early and commercially successful turboprop-powered regional airliner, Fokke ...

aircraft from RSNAC linking

Matsapha Airport Matsapha Airport is an airport located near Manzini, a city in Manzini District of Eswatini. It serves flights of the Eswatini Government and mercy flights. History Although a new airport for Manzini, King Mswati III International Airport, ...

with

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

and

Dar-es-Salaam Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over ...

. In June 2000, the

was replaced with a

BAe Jetstream 41 The British Aerospace Jetstream 41 is a turboprop-powered feederliner and regional airliner, designed by British Aerospace as a stretched version of the popular Jetstream 31. Intended to compete directly with 30-seat aircraft like the Embraer ...

aircraft. Swaziland Airlink became Eswatini Airlink after the country's name was changed. The airline ceased operations on June 1, 2022.

Destinations

Eswatini Airlink served the following destinations as part of

Fleet

Eswatini Airlink did not maintain a dedicated fleet at the time of closure. Flights were operated under Airlink's

AOC Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of ...

as part of the

schedule using or aircraft. Eswatini Airlink previously operated the

, and

Embraer ERJ-135 The Embraer ERJ family (for Embraer Regional Jet, model names EMB-135, EMB-140 and EMB-145) are regional jets designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace company Embraer. The family includes the ERJ135 (37 passengers), ERJ140 (44 passenger ...

under their own

References

External links

Official website
Defunct airlines of Eswatini Airlines established in 1999 Airlines disestablished in 2022 Airlines formerly banned in the European Union 1999 establishments in Swaziland {{Swaziland-stub