The situation for Air Mauritius appears to be worsening. The turmoil facing the company threatens its long-term survival in the industry.
New local reporting in Mauritius, following several fundamental changes to the business, highlights an ongoing crisis in the company’s finances.
This troubled financial position threatens the airline’s long-term survival. It requires overcoming USD 344 million or 15.7 billion Mauritian Rupees in financing.
The struggles experienced followed years of what the airline describes as persistent hurt and management not equipped to run the airline.
Air Mauritius has long struggled with finances and management, and this has been a theme over the last decade. Current management knows it is a massive hill to overcome, and substantial restructuring must occur.
Increasing expenses have been partially to blame for the struggles. A lack of focus on the rising expenses year over year or an attempt to lower them to a level that was deemed manageable compounded these woes alongside other challenges.
Those other challenges range from route decisions that backfired on the business to selecting airports to serve. Upper management’s moves resulted in losses that continued to increase to unsustainable levels.
In 2020, the carrier entered voluntary administration, a move aimed at repositioning it for the future. However, as executives currently at the carrier highlighted, critical decisions backfired from a human resource perspective.
Fleet Decisions At Air Mauritius
Air Mauritius even highlights the purchase of the game-changing Airbus A350 as a mismanaged decision, primarily driven by far too many units being ordered than what was genuinely required, leading to losses.
Other core fleet decisions, such as retaining older planes but shipping off younger, more efficient ones, were made. This is one of the more straightforward decisions that has negatively affected finances.
For these and many other reasons, Air Mauritius finds itself fighting for its life once more, attempting to navigate turbulent air after a decade of poor decision-making. This leads to a situation that will be the fight of the airline’s life to overcome.
Now, the Air Mauritius fleet has 12 active aircraft, four of which are the next-generation Airbus A350-900, which averages 6.4 years of age.
In addition to a commitment to the A350, the airline has four Airbus A330s, ranging from the current engine option to the Neo. There are also four ATR72s.
The ATR72s are the oldest planes measured by average age, but their purpose dramatically differs from the widebody jet’s connectivity.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Daniel Fowkes is a Melbourne-based aviation analyst and journalist with over a decade of industry experience. As founder of Dj’s Aviation, he delivers trusted analysis on aircraft, airline strategy and global aviation trends for djsaviation.net
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Sadly never received my refund for a cancelled flight
How come
Faced with this now
Air Mauritius should operate from heathrow not gatwick passengers struggling to go there difficult situation 5 days per week in heathrow will be more profitable
Plane make money when they r ithe air not standing on air port for 9 hrs staff not experience too many management customer service is none existence people donor want to use air Mauritius for the bad reputation
I am still waiting for refund for a cancelled flight. Ineffective management,corruption, jobs given to cronies and political associates. Air Mauritius never reply nor acknowledge emails. Interdepartmental rivalry encouraged by the trade unions. Free tickets for past board for life. Staff and families entitled to free tickets although the current management committee has said that some of these privileges would cease
Totally agree with your assessment of the airline. Very poorly managed, customer service…zero, non-existent!! We are still waiting for a letter from them, in relation to a cancelled flight from MU to Perth, that was back in Oct 2023!!!
I fully support your views.
Bad decision to move to Gatwick from Heathrow. There are many disadvantages, causing unnecessary inconvenience.
Lol how is Gatwick not accessible? If you can get to Heathrow, you can get to Gatwick mate, but drive or public transport. Don’t be lazy!!
Govt..of Mauritius political party’s messed up AirMu..management.
Stop all quangoes .corruptions.
AirFrance also shown failures in managing Air.Mu..ie.recent drug issues.
New Alliance govt..must step in firm boundaries. Hire and Fire non productive and below performance staffing at all levels.
Finally considering private Airlines foreign companies to run and operate our Airlines
Gatrick is less congested airport
We are currently in Mauritius, I hope we get stuck here:-)
Some of the Air hostesses should be retrained in lessons of politeness. That is an important factor why passengers are reluctant to travel by Air Mauritius nowadays.
Thank you for uour time
Best wishes
Well said mate. The staff are very unprofessional. They are lazy and show no respect to passengers on on flights. They should be sacked. It’s must be down to management’s fault. Bad managers! The whole lot should go. They are corrupt similarly to their government. The company should be restructured, recruiting a European management to run it. All or most of their flights operate on full capacity all the time. How come they in such dire state?
I concur wrt to the flight stewards. Flew from Cape Town, connected AirMu flight from Jozi and the male steward was impolite throughout the flight. Sevice delivery is non-existent. On another note, we experience the same situation in South Africa. Corruption rules.
The problems are many. The company needs a competent CEO, with business experience, not one driven by the politics of the day. Keep politics out of the running of the business.
Then it needs a solid business plan to drive the business to be competitive. Address whether aircraft can be leased over outright purchase.
Look again at the routes covered. Are they routes that passengers are likely to favour or disfavour when choosing to fly? For example, reconsider the Heathrow to Mauritius route. The Airline had a competitive edge from Heathrow to Mauritius, that is, direct flights. Tie up with other airlines, where possible and convenient, to fill gaps where and when the number of passengers at off-peak travelling is too low and unprofitable.
Then, revise all costs to see if they could be lowered without lowering the quality of the service.
Take a fine comb to staff costs.
This is a piece of sad,shocking and negative news for the many passengers from UK who depend on Air Mauritius to visit the island and islanders including relatives.
I really don’t understand this need for Heathrow Airport. Gatwick is not far off and very accessible as well. Both by drive and public transport
Mk have employed far to many managers with high wages u cannot survive to many manager n all employees should have a new contract renew every 12 month n take a cut in their wages n allowances more control regular checks the minister in charge of aviation need to have regular meeting with the c e o n his team plus the employees representative as well this is a tough business no roon for mistake n wastage
I felt very sorry for Air Mauritius ,they focuses more on tourists and treated own mru people with less respect.NRI mru people travel mostly by other airlines,I have been treated badly 24 years ago in Flights,decided to travel by others.Nowadays I travelled in business class with my all families.The biggest lost is getting existing mru customers.And price and tickets compared is very competitive with others,so No good incentive to Mauritians abroad.Shame you lost your international customers through your arrogance and poor customer service.You failed to constantly evaluate or matched your service reviews.
Ditto. My bad experience was some 30 years ago both from ground and crew staff. Since then I have switched to a more customer focus airline and use their services on a regular basis. Perhaps Air Mauritius should learn successful airline like Emirates.
24 years is a long time to hold a grudge. Give them a second chance and help them keep going
Dear Air Mauritius. Since you have so many people who probably live around Hounslow and haven’t got any clue of life outside West London, I have the perfect solution fi you to please everyone. You should do 3 flights a week from Gatwick, where the landing fees are cheaper, so we pay cheaper prices in terms of tickets and you should do 3 flights a week from Heathrow where the landing fees are more and let those Heathrow fans to pay more.
Thank me later.
Unfortunate that air Mauritius never honoured their commitment to refund $A6000 of cancelled flights due to 2020 voluntary administration and covid to my daughter and family.
Reputation of airMauritius tarnished among our Australian relatives including my son in law.
We also had flights cancelled due to Covid. They banked it for 24 months and we used it once the world opened up no problem. They wont refund a ticket.
Good Management strategy that decides the future of any organization. Read the book corporate Strategy by Igor Ansoff. It,s the only best book to stay by your side if you want new developments and Managements tech.The same book stays in the Shelf of Ambani,s. And they are Professional Winners.
Very interesting read
This is a worry. We are booked to fly with them from Mauritius to Johannesburg for a flight back to Australia in November
MK CANNOT compete with Emirates. MRU-Dubai return, or MRU-Heathrow on MK is nearly the same price as EK. What airline do you think I’ll choose? MK with cramped uncomfortable seats? Or EK with much more leg room and larger seats??? Have an educated guess…
MK direct flight A350 eco class 32′ legroom, 18′ width,,,,, EK not direct both flights A380 eco class 32′ legroom, 17,5′ width, MK the bigger seat, I think that cancels your comment,
The airline should be privatized. In defense of the airline I have only had very good flights and service whenever I have flown Air Mauritius. Strategically this business could be of great interest to a party that understands the business
This is a piece of sad,shocking and negative news for the many passengers from UK who depend on Air Mauritius to visit the island and islanders including relatives.
Air mauritius should start fly from Durban again there used to be 3 flights a week from Durban and fully sold out.
Your prices increased 10folds therefore passenger are flying with other airlines that have good planes too
Air Mauritius which was one of the best airlines I have flown on is getting worse, due to internal corruption and the really poor service they give at Plaisance airport where they lack professionalism and look for any excuse to make passengers pay for 1 or 2kg over waiting. It would help if they go back to Heathrow Airport as many people in London cannot be bother to go to Gatwick where they lose many passengers. Furthermore, that terrible transit from London to CDG in France is annoying the 2nd reason passengers are avoiding Air Mauritius.
To be honest the whole country is doing down the pan.
Incompetence at the very top, political pressure, degrading service, aging inflight staff, self-interest by CEO for the purchase of 6 A350 just before Covid, too many travels by staff and their families at discounted fares have dragged the company down. Not to mention non competitive fares as compared to other companies and no clear future strategy etc etc.
What is puzzling though is why MK has not followed major European airlines and created a low cost subsidiary. The airline’s problem will be compounded by the shrinking tourist flow from Europe. By undermining the then government strategy of making the country a regional hub, MK may have driven a nail in its coffin.
I have read the comments made by the many people that gave travelled with AM.
Unfortunately, I have to agree with the level of service and respect given to their own kind!!
I see how the tourists are treated during the flight duration and arrival in Mauritius, with total compassion and courtesy.
I myself am a Mauritian, born in Mauritius but left at the age of 2 to live in the UK with my family, have experienced how we are treated differently just by the way we speak compared to a Maurtian resident, and not acceptable!!
Staff in the air, on ground, and immigration need to respect their fellow people, just like other countries respecting their own!!
It is such a shame that our country will probably no longer own their own Airline!!
I wish Air Mauritius all the best, hoping that things change for the better and that all comments made are taken in to consideration in improving and moving forward for a better service should they continue flying!!
I completely agree what you are saying. I feel ashamed travelling to Mauritius They should be educated good customer service but not corruption
Sounds very much – almost identical, in fact – to how SAA was flown into the ground…
Management of politically-connected, incompetent (and in the case of SAA, all-too-often downright corrupt) appointees who knew NOTHING about how to run an airline – other than into a mountain of waste, mismanagement and corruption.
Sounds very much how SAA was flown into the ground…
Management of politically-connected, incompetent (and in the case of SAA, all-too-often downright corrupt) appointees who knew NOTHING about how to run an airline – other than into a mountain of waste, mismanagement and corruption.
Apologies, posted twice.
Really like your airline, you have a good image, didn’t know things were so dire.
Before SAA, the same outcome was faced by Air Afrique from the same symptoms as political interference, mediocre management, degrading service quality, flights delays, technical problems, travel abuse by staff on 10% fare…while Air Afrique was going down MK was at the top in Africa. This envious reputation is now owned by Ethiopian that, a few years back, wanted to codshare with MK but the latter preferred KQ.
That’s what happens when unqualified people are put into position of jobs they are not qualified for, sad but true. However this can be put right, and should have a chance to do so. Tackling the root of all the problems:
New management, customer service training. And policy of how many family members can be employed.
For years i travel with air Mauritius, then stopped after cov19 in support I will book my next flight coming this year with Air Mauritius.
Biman Bangladesh Airlines had the very same issue, poor decisions, bad management & dissatisfied passengers.
Also high position jobs within the airline were awarded to relatives & chummies with very little experience & qualification.
Solution was to hire European management and qualified staff.
Air Mauritius real problem is that it is a typical sub Saharan African micro flag carrier with no economies of scale whatsoever, which faces has to compete with mega-sized flag carriers like Emirates, Turkish Airlines, British Airways and Air France, all of which have huge economies of scale and a much, much better cost-to-income ratio. Aircraft / route / airport choices are all secondary issues in this context.
This is totally correct, coupled with having put incompetent managers at HQ before and after Covid during the rule of the Jugnauth administration.
It’s probably too late for the new (old) mgmt to turn things around now! Sad, as the product was 4* and the yields to MRU are high, due to only Emirates competing (and not Qatar, Etihad, Ethiopian, etc.)
Air Mauritius reached here because of gross mismanagement.Do you know where airline make their big bucks.Air Mauritius must start filling the business class with revenue passengers and not by board members and their famalies travelling for free.As long as Air Mauritius management does not stop this practice ,it will always be in the RED and it will be a tragedy the day Air Mauritius goes under.
The downfall of big companies is the same as government. GREED AND CORRUPTION. They will never accept the truth.
Shame real shame my flight on dec 8 to Mauritius, it took me 4 days to get to my destination. I was refused my claim because they have a special policy says that they are no responsible for airline that is cancel due to repaire or cancel,so no refund ,they well deserved to go closed the Damm business, ripe off people mi.Abdool Hamid Burtally.i know a couple on the same flight toldme they got full refund,Air Canada regret they can’t do nothing for me,I have to deal with my country airline.
I claimed for 2 broken luggage,i got only 1 refund.
After 3 months I received an email asking me the claim forms that I handed myself ,I received only 1 claim.it really sucks.the staff don’t care,no curtesy what so ever.
I Landed at Charles de Gauleon Dec8 2024,with delay waiting in a cold and dirty airport like a warehouse until flight is now canceled,i reached Mauritius on Dec11,2024,with 2 broken Luggage s,i was denied claim for 1 Luggage and no refund for the flight delay.
Please keep informed.
Wated to fly air Mauritius in Aug.Will there still be business?
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I am travelling to Mauritius in September from Gatwick will air Mauritius still be operating or will I need to change to a different aircraft
It is always sad when any business goes under. The ramifications for both company and workers are dire. One can make allowances if a well run business falters on account of market forces However. When this is due to omission on the part of those at the helm. They must be brought to account. Resting on one’s laurels is never a good idea in business. It leads to ineffeciency. Complacency and arrogance,among other things. Further more, treating consumers as canon fodder, is bound to end up like the Titanic. The article has summed up aptly what lies behind the possible demise of Air Mauritius. Let us hope there is still a ray of sunshine.
I, being Mauritian felt I should fly the national carrier with my wife and our daughter in June 2025, on an all inclusive holiday to Mauritius. Following our experience, in attempting to book our seats, I wish I had chosen another airline. What we came across. Was a company at odds with its passengers and a total lack of empathy on the part of front line staff. Other problems we encountered, related to
1.Emails not being answered, even when we sent copies of the email by registered post to their London office.
2. Discrepancies between what is said on their website and factual state of affairs eg disabled passengers can choose their seats without incurring additional charges, a blatant misrepresentation. So too, the notion that the booking of seats can only be done 30 days prior to the flight. We found out that selection of seats had been carried out since September 2024.
3 contact number, London office given as +230, a phone number in Mauritius and so on.
4.Even when I asked family members in Mauritius to help out, they were unable to do so.
After nearly 3 weeks of trying, we have finally secured our seats. We have flown with Emirates, Air France, British Airways on previous holidays. The contrast could not be more stark.
It is often said the behaviour of front line staff often mirrors the attitude of the bosses. Air Mauritius, in its entirety must take heed or sink like the Titanic.
I’ve been waiting for 2 x business class ticket refunds for almost a year now. They are treating customer’s terribly. Check out the Facebook group pages where customers are trying to get their monies back. They ignore emails and when one phones to ask, customers are put on eternal hold and then cut off. They deserve to shut down.