April 23, 2010 -- President James Michel has congratulated the staff of Air Seychelles in Europe and in Seychelles for their exceptional dedication and professionalism during the last week of international flight cancellations, caused by the volcano activity in Iceland.

This follows an influx of messages of congratulations and appreciation to Air Seychelles from passengers and travel agents, which had introduced additional flights from Seychelles, and organised for stranded passengers to be bussed around Europe, in order to return to their home destination.

" This week has proved that the management and staff of Air Seychelles are really flying the Creole spirit. They endured stressful circumstances and delivered a service very few airlines were willing to provide in this aviation crisis. The reputation of the airline and the country have been commended by many, and I join in this applause," said President Michel.

President Michel said that the tourism industry needs to reinforce its capacity to act in a unified manner in times of airline-related crisis, and that destination management companies, hotels and airlines should worker in closer collaboration in the future, in order to lessen the impact of passenger stress and frustration.

" Air Seychelles has done a great job and in this instance has provided a model for others to follow; that in the tourism industry it is crucial to go 'an extra mile' to deliver a service that leaves the customer happy and with good memories of Seychelles."

The temporary ban on flying within the EU is estimated to have cost airlines a total of 1.3 billion Euros according to IATA.