- Governments around the world still have financial interests in more than half of the world's flag-carrying airlines.
- But as of the 80s, countries around the world surrendered control for financial reasons.
- South Africa, along with Zimbabwe, India, Pakistan and Romania still have tight control over their airlines - all of which are in debt.
- For more visit Business Insider South Africa.
Governments around the world still have financial interests in more than half of the world’s flag-carrying airlines. But of the some 148 national carriers still flying, most of this takes the form of government shareholdings, rather than total ownership, according to data published by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
This puts South African Airways in a club of about 61 state-controlled airlines around the world. And the company that SAA keeps in this state-owned club is not made up of the stalwarts of the international aviation industry.
Airlines with 100% government shareholdings include those belonging to the likes of India, Romania, Zimbabwe, and Pakistan - all of which are in debt to the tune of millions.
Many of the world’s most prominent national airlines, such Air Canada, Qantas, Lufthansa, and British Airways, are no longer owned or even majority controlled by countries in which they originated. Some, like Air France, are partially privatised - with government still holding on to minority stakes.
Although many now-privately owned airlines still technically fly the flag of their respective founding nations, some, such as Chile, Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom, surrendered control as far back as the late-80s.
Others, such as Mexico, Ireland, Bangladesh and Austria, hung onto their airlines for longer - and only moved out of the aviation business after the turn of the century.
The reason so many countries cling to their flag carriers is believed to have its roots in the 1944 Chicago Convention of Civil Aviation. Like roads, railways, and bridges, national airlines were positioned as part of the national infrastructure and identity. In some cases, particularly in Africa, politicians may fear the gaps created by not having a national carrier.
And since then, many governments have considered them a necessary point of pride, and used their control of the industry to their advantage. At the time, state-owned airlines operated in a bubble where governments restricted competition, set fares, and controlled routes. But the privatisation and liberalisation of the industry, along with the bloated state carriers’ inabilities to adapt, brought about the demise of many.
Still, as recently as 2017, some have made the argument for the nationalistic importance of a government-owned airline. Former Skywise co-chair Tabassum Qadir said in reference to SAA that although conventional wisdom suggests states should not run airlines, there’s more at play than many people realise.
“A national carrier is an embassy with wings, transporting culture, cuisine, commerce and goodwill around the world,” she said.
But these “embassies with wings” come at a cost, and South African Airways, which has received billions in bailouts, is also not the only airline to draw heavily on state funds.
Similar trends of public funding and restructuring for flag carriers are common. Italy’s Alitalia has cost taxpayers R112 billion in the last decade, and it was ultimately forced to sell 49% of its business to Etihad Airways. Poland’s LOT received a government bailout to the equivalent of R3 billion in 2014.
And Swissair, once so successful it earned the nickname “the flying bank”, also met its demise after several bailouts - which according to The Journal of Transport History, “can be explained partly by a change in the market environment and partly by Swissair’s inability to reform and adapt”.
Examples of successful state-owned airlines exist, but are fairly limited. Singapore Airlines and Emirates are often touted as success stories. And in Africa, Ethiopian Airlines has been a notable exception to the state-owned trend - in 2018 the airline increased passenger numbers to become the largest carrier on the continent, overtaking SAA.
See also: 5 things SAA can learn from Ethiopian Airlines - now Africa’s most profitable airline
According to the Helen Suzman Foundation’s Andrew Barlow, “The lessons for SAA’s shareholder, our government, are manifold and yet straightforward and easy to implement.”
Key to its success, Barlow told Business Insider South Africa in 2018, is the airline’s independence.
“Though state-owned, [Ethiopian Airlines] is, first and foremost, a business,” he said.
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