Fastjet drops Airbus jets for Embraer while planning HQ move

Fastjet will switch to a fleet of Embraer regional jets from larger Airbus planes as new CE Nico Bezuidenhout seeks to stem losses by better matching capacity to demand. The fledgling carrier also plans to move its headquarters to Johannesburg from London to pare expenses and bring the company closer to its key markets, Bezuidenhout, who took over as CE last month, said. Fastjet will have returned 3 leased 145-seat Airbus A319 jets by the end of September and plans to sub-lease 2, with a sixth, which it owns, up for sale. The carrier has agreed short-term leases on 3 Embraer E190s with 108 seats apiece, the first of which is due in Tanzania within 2 weeks. Based on current projections Fastjet should break even in terms of its cash flow from Q4 of next year, Bezuidenhout said. <br/>