Based in the Madagascan capital of Antananarivo, Société Nationale Malgache de Transports Aériens S.A. operating as Air Madagascar, is the national flag carrier of the Indian Ocean island nation. From its hub at Ivato International Airport (TNR), Air Madagascar operated an extensive domestic network and international flights to Africa, Asia, Europe, and other Indian Ocean island neighbors.

First formed in 1947, Transports Aériens Intercontinentaux (TAI) operated as a feeder airline for Air France with two Douglas DC-3s and six de Havilland D.H.89 Dragon Rapides. A third DC-3 was added to the fleet in 1957 before the Malagasy government and Air France decided to reorganize the airline. In 1961 the airline's name was changed to Madair, and it became the official flag carrier of Madagascar following its independence from France.

The name was changed from Madair to Air Madagascar

Later the same year, Madair began flying from Antananarivo to Paris with a refueling stop at Djibouti, in the Horn of Africa. For the flights, Madair used a leased Douglas DC-7. Because of a negative image created by the name "Madair," the airline decided to rebrand as Air Madagascar in 1962.

As airlines worldwide began to embrace the jet age, Air Madagascar deployed a Boeing 707 on the Antananarivo-Djibouti-Paris route with Air France pilots and crew. In 1965 Air Madagascar replaced its Dragon Rapides, placing modern aircraft on domestic routes. In 1968 Air Madagascar began regularly scheduled flights to Rome and a year later acquired its first Boeing 737-200. All the maintenance for the aircraft was done in South Africa after it began being used for flights to Johannesburg and the Tanzanian capital of Dar es Salaam.

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Air Madagascar ran into financial problems

In 1971, Air Madagascar started to retire it's now old DC-3s, replacing them with de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otters. A second Boeing 737 was added to the fleet in 1972, allowing the airline to expand its international network further. A Boeing 747-200B Combi joined the fleet in 1979 but was replaced with a new Boeing 767-300ER purchased from Boeing. In 1999 the government's plans to take Air Madagascar private stalled after the Madagascar Central Bank defaulted on airline payments to private lenders.

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Air Madagascars' Boeing 747-200Combi was retired in 2000. Photo: Aero Icarus via Wikimedia Commons

To improve the airline's efficiency and make it more attractive to a private entity, Lufthansa Consulting was awarded a management contract to run the airline in 2002. To sort out the financial mess the airline had gotten into, creditors agreed to forgive half of Air Madagascar's outstanding debt and reschedule payments for the rest of the money over three years.

Having been banned from flying to the European Union in 2011, Air Madagascar got around the ban by chartering an Atlantic Airways Boeing 777-200 for their flights to Paris. In 2012, a long-term deal was done with Air France to wet-lease aircraft and allow them to operate flights to Europe, once more flying aircraft painted in Air Madagascar livery.

Air Austral initially helped but then bailed

The next few years saw several failed attempts at privatization, leading to a strategic partnership with France's Réunion island carrier Air Austral. Under the agreement terms, Air Austral acquired a 49% stake in Air Madagascar while the remaining 51% stayed in government hands. In the summer of 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Air Austral decided to end its partnership with Air Madagascar.

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Air Madagascar used ATRs for domestic flights. Photo: Bernard Gagnon via Wikimedia Commons

Following the breakup with Air Austral, Air Madagascar was left with debts of around $80 million, primarily due to the leasing of ATR aircraft from Air Austral. The government of Madagascar also says that the airline has far more employees than it needs. While not currently operating any flights, the local Madagascar press believes that Air Madagascar will merge with Tsaradia, its domestic subsidiary, and be renamed Madagascar Airlines.