The Seychelles has set aside SCR21 million (€1.4 million) for an airline incentive scheme to reward airlines that offer direct long-haul flights to the Indian Ocean Island destination.
Running from 2024 to 2026, the scheme provides financial and marketing incentives to encourage key airlines to increase flight frequency, commit to year-round operations, and open new routes to Seychelles. It offers subsidies, landing fee discounts, and marketing support to participating airlines.
“We feel there is a need to encourage such airlines, incentivising airlines to come to Seychelles,” said the country’s Vice President, Ahmed Afif.
The scheme will be overseen by an advisory committee led by Sherin Francis, Principal Secretary for Tourism, who will track its progress and adjust strategies as needed.
Afif noted that partner airlines like Air France, British Airways, Condor, and Sichuan Airlines were in active discussions with the Seychelles to finalise incentives aimed at achieving sustainable tourism growth.
New air connectivity agreements signed
Parallel to the launch of the incentive scheme, Seychelles made significant strides in enhancing its air connectivity at the recent International Civil Aviation Negotiations (ICAN-2024) event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Seychelles delegation, led by Minister for Transport Antony Derjacques and Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority CEO, Gary Albert, successfully signed agreements with seven countries – Germany, Eswatini, the United Kingdom, Thailand, Turkey, India and the United Arab Emirates.
Talks are under way with various airlines, including Chinese carriers, to explore options for direct flights. Additionally, Germany, one of Seychelles’ largest tourism markets, may see increased services, with interest expressed by Lufthansa to add routes alongside Condor, which resumed flights in September.
India’s Indigo Airlines has agreed to start flights to Seychelles in February 2025, while Saudi Arabian carrier FlyNas has shown interest as well.
While attending ICAN-2024, the Seychelles delegation met with airlines that had previously ceased or limited services to the islands, to understand their concerns.
“We had this conversation with them and we understood that there is interest, but with a lack of aircraft available, these airlines have had to prioritise their more profitable markets, although that is expected to be rectified by the end of the year,” said Albert.
The Seychelles delegation also visited Subang International Airport in Kuala Lumpur to gain insights for the redevelopment of Seychelles International Airport.
