CemAir at 20: The survivor airline now partnering SAA - Miles van der Molen

From courtroom battles to code-share partners. Cemair founder Miles van der Molen explains why teaming up with SAA now makes commercial sense, how airline partnerships really work, and what this means for ticket prices, competition and the future of South African aviation..Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa’s bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..Watch here:.Listen here:.By BizNews reporter.South African aviation is littered with tombstones.OneTime. Velvet Sky. SkyWise. Mango. Names that once promised cheaper tickets and a shake-up of a rigid industry, only to collapse under debt, regulation or bad timing. Airlines, everywhere in the world, are brutally unforgiving businesses. In South Africa, they are worse.That is what makes CemAir’s 20th anniversary remarkable.Founded by pilot-entrepreneur Miles van der Molen, CemAir has survived the global financial crisis, a regulatory grounding, Covid lockdowns and one of the most distorted airline markets in the world. Along the way it has quietly built a profitable niche, flying where others could not, or would not.Now comes the twist that few expected. CemAir has entered into a commercial partnership with South African Airways.For a fiercely independent airline that spent years competing against state-supported carriers, the move raised eyebrows. For van der Molen, it is less ideological and far more practical.“This is standard global airline practice,” he explains. “It’s a non-equity partnership. We’re not buying each other. We’re working together where it makes sense.”At the heart of the deal is a codeshare arrangement. In plain terms, a single flight can carry multiple airline codes. A CemAir aircraft can be sold as an SAA flight, and vice versa. Customers book through either airline, but the operating carrier is clearly disclosed.It is a small step on the airline partnership ladder, but a meaningful one.For SAA, which is rebuilding cautiously after years of mismanagement, partnerships offer reach without massive capital risk. For CemAir, the upside is access to a wider customer base and better aircraft utilisation.On busy trunk routes like Johannesburg to Cape Town, SAA’s Airbus A320s make sense. On thinner regional routes, CemAir’s fleet is far more efficient. Matching aircraft to demand improves economics on both sides.Van der Molen describes it as a “one plus one equals three” scenario.Critics will argue that CemAir is now benefiting from a taxpayer-supported airline. Van der Molen sees it differently.“The stronger SAA becomes, the less of a burden it is on the taxpayer,” he says. “If there’s a problem, we’re part of the solution, not the cause.”CemAir’s focus remains firmly on secondary and regional destinations. George. Plettenberg Bay. Smaller centres that struggle to support larger jets but still need reliable air links. That is where the airline has carved out its niche, and where it intends to grow.The big aircraft arms race does not appeal.Global supply constraints have pushed delivery times for new planes into the next decade. Airbus has thousands of aircraft on order. Boeing is still battling production and reputational issues. Entering that market now would mean overpaying.Instead, CemAir is patient.That patience has been hard-won.Van der Molen still remembers the darkest chapter in the airline’s history, when regulators grounded the airline. Unlike others who never recovered, CemAir fought back in court and won. It was a moment that could have ended the business.“It’s tenacity,” he says. “And strong partnerships. Progress isn’t made in a straight line.”Those partnerships are now expanding beyond South Africa. CemAir already has an interline agreement with Emirates, and is testing a move toward a full codeshare.If successful, it would mean a CemAir ticket could one day connect seamlessly onto an Emirates long-haul flight. For a regional South African airline, that is a significant leap.It also underscores how aviation has changed. Travellers care less about logos and more about convenience. Who gets them from A to B, on time, safely, with minimal friction.The competitive landscape at home remains fraught. Van der Molen remains openly critical of FlySafair, arguing that its ownership structure contravenes South African aviation regulations. The issue has dragged on for years with little regulatory clarity.An uneven playing field, he warns, ultimately harms the industry.Pricing remains under pressure. South Africa enjoys some of the cheapest airfares in the world, often below cost. That may not be sustainable forever.Yet CemAir continues to hold its ground.Part of the difference, van der Molen believes, is being deeply involved in every aspect of the operation. He still flies commercially, keeping his licence current. It connects him to the business in a way spreadsheets never can.Aircraft parts, fuel contracts, scheduling, margins. In aviation, every detail matters.“There are very few airlines worldwide that last 20 years,” he says. “People take confidence in that.”So should investors, partners and passengers.CemAir’s partnership with SAA is not a sell-out. It is a signal that South African aviation, battered as it is, may finally be learning how to cooperate instead of self-destruct.In an industry where survival itself is an achievement, that may be the most important story of all.

CemAir at 20: The survivor airline now partnering SAA - Miles van der Molen

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