UK-based international aviation charter broker Air Charter Service (ACS) has reported that the past year has seen dramatic increases in workforce logistics charter flight bookings by energy, hydrocarbon and mining companies. ACS has offices in 27 countries around the world (including South Africa), spanning six continents.

Year-on-year, enquiries rocketed by 145% while actual bookings soared by 120%. The company expected this trend to continue and that such charter flight bookings would remain at the higher levels that developed during the past year and in particular during the last six months.

“We have shared this forecast based on the significantly increasing demand that we are seeing from the mining services industry,” pointed out ACS Group Commercial Jets director Matthew Purton. “These clients will continue to face limited options to fly commercially on the more niche routes that they are required to travel and are now seeking long-term connectivity without the risk of delays and cancellations. Another option that firms are considering is the consolidation of various companies onto one commercial airliner flight to make chartering aircraft more viable.”

The Covid-19 pandemic resulted in a massive decrease in both business and leisure air travel. This had led to a reduction in the number of routes, flight frequencies and size of the airliners employed. And the International Air Transport Association had downgraded its forecasts for recovery in the commercial aviation sector during this year.

As a result, there would continue to be a gap in the market created by the reduction in scheduled services. ACS expected to be one of the companies that would fill that gap. The company could organise air transport for clients’ employees, whether travelling individually or in groups, and whether the requirement was for helicopters, private jets or even commercial airliners. It could also arrange for dedicated freighter aircraft to carry mining equipment and could supply an onboard courier service for spare parts or expensive items for mining activities.