The struggling, but iconic, national carrier Air Zimbabwe is reported to be in talks with giant Chinese mega-carrier, Hainan Airlines. The Zimambwean Government are expected to offer a large shareholding, probably above 51%) in the Government owned carrier to Hainan Airlines in return for investment in terms of cash and expertise. Chinese companies already has significant infrastructure investments throughout Southern Africa, including building the new international airport at Gaborone, Botswana and it will be interesting to see whether this deal - in the transport sector rather than the infrastructure of transport goes ahead. There is little doubt that Air Zimbabwe could be a very successful international carrier again given the appropriate level of investment and resource. The airline world is changing and the consolidation of airlines (which is a continuing been a theme of this blog) may be entering a new phase with money from the East rather than the West dominating the headlines.
