Velvet Sky was a low cost airline based at the King Shaka International Airport near Durban, South Africa. The airline launched in March 2011.[3] It ceased operations in February 2012 and was liquidated in May 2012.
History
Velvet Sky Aviation was established in 2009 as a subsidiary of Macdonald Holdings. Flight operations began on 22 March 2011. It was the only airline based in Durban and claimed to be the first Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment compliant airline in South Africa.[4]
On 25 March 2011 technical problems with the airline's only aircraft caused a seven-hour delay at Johannesburg. A replacement aircraft had to be chartered and a new aircrew had to be brought in as the Boeing 737, built in 1988, was grounded for repairs. The original crew could not continue the flight as they would have exceeded their duty hours limit. Customers also complained about poor service relating to problems with the airline's website and telephone service.[5]