Air Seychelles and Air Austral have formed a new partnership through a special prorate agreement (SPA) allowing their respective customers to travel between Seychelles and Reunion on one ticket with immediate effect, the airline said on Thursday.

According to the airline, this comes after the decision by Air Austral to cancel their nonstop route between Seychelles and Reunion. Discussions were initiated with Air Seychelles to offer continuity of service between the two islands.

The chief executive of Air Seychelles, Sandy Benoiton said, "It is a pleasure for Air Seychelles to be able to intervene and offer an alternative bridge between Seychelles and Reunion at a time when it was most needed. We look forward to a long and fruitful cooperation."  

On his side, Joseph Brema, chairman of the management board of Air Austral, said, "Air Austral is pleased with this partnership with Air Seychelles. It was important for us to be able to offer an alternative travel to the Seychelles to our passengers. It's a destination we know is particularly appreciated by the Reunion islanders and which we hope to be able to resume, as soon as the financial and operational situation will allow it, in agreement with our authorities."

The agreement for travelling between Seychelles and Reunion via Mauritius will benefit passengers allowing more flexible and cost-effective travel options. Travellers will also benefit from a single ticket for their entire journey, with their baggage checked in to their final destination.

Air Seychelles gave examples of two one-way trips. From Seychelles to Reunion via Mauritius - departure from Seychelles at 9.30 am arriving in Mauritius at 12.05 pm and departure from Mauritius at 2.45 pm arriving in Reunion at 3.30 pm.

Another example of a one-way trip from Reunion to Seychelles via Mauritius is departing from Reunion at 1.15 pm and arriving in Mauritius at 2 pm followed by departure from Mauritius at 5.05 pm and arriving in Seychelles at 7.40 pm.

Air Seychelles currently operates between Seychelles and Mauritius three times a week - Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays - offering passengers a range of dates to plan their holidays and connections.

The Seychelles' national carrier operates regionally to Colombo in Sri Lanka, Tel Aviv in Israel, Johannesburg in South Africa, Mumbai in India, and Mauritius with its Airbus A320NEOs.