CONNECTIVITY
Whitewater rafting, Western Cape
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DOMESTIC FLIGHT
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KULULA.COM FLY SAFAIR SA EXPRESS
here have never been so many options for heading south. Winter 2018/19 saw
British Airways begin fl ying 38 direct fl ights a week from London to South Africa — its largest ever programme. Not only did it begin its thrice- weekly Dreamliner service from Heathrow to Durban in late October, it increased its Heathrow to Johannesburg service from twice daily to 18 times a week and is now fl ying double-daily from Heathrow to Cape Town and thrice-weekly from Gatwick to Cape Town. October also saw Virgin
Atlantic fl y twice a day on its direct Heathrow to Johannesburg route and Emirates, which fl ies to South African destinations such as Johannesburg and Durban via Dubai, launch Edinburgh as its eighth UK departure point. This after the airline added daily departures from London Stansted back in June. December 2018 saw Ethiopian Airlines launch its new four-times-a-week Dreamliner service from Manchester to Addis Ababa, from where onward connections include Johannesburg and Cape Town.
Other solid options for getting to South Africa include national carrier South African Airlines, which fl ies daily from London Heathrow to Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo Airport. Those travelling from Ireland
can connect to one of the British airports, or consider fl ights via Amsterdam with KLM, Paris with Air France, Doha with Qatar Airways or Dubai with Emirates. Connections can also be made via Madrid with Iberia or Istanbul with Turkish Airlines.
Domestic airlift
As part of its ongoing restructuring, South African Airlines has shifted some of its former domestic routes to wholly-owned domestic carrier Mango. The airline serves a swathe of South African destinations such as Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein and George. Johannesburg-based regional airline SA Airlink fl ies to nine African countries. Plus, late last year it added a service to the island of St Helena from Cape Town or Johannesburg fl ying via Windhoek, Namibia. Other regional players include South
SOUTHAFRICA .NET
African Airlines’ partner SA Express, a state-owned carrier serving nearby countries such as Zambia and Zimbabwe. Recent years have seen a rush of domestic and regional low-cost carriers enter South African airspace including Johannesburg-based FlySafair, launched in 2014, which serves domestic destinations such as Cape Town, George and Port Elizabeth. The most seasoned low-cost player is
kulula.com. May saw the airline, which is operated by Comair and serves Cape Town, Durban, East London, and George from its Johannesburg hub, enter into a codeshare agreement with KLM. The Airports Company of South Africa is investing heavily in upgrading the country’s gateway airports: Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo International, Cape Town International and Durban’s King Shaka International. Other airports on a growth path include Johannesburg’s privately owned Lanseria International, whose CEO Rampa Rammopo has stated his aim to grow passengers from 1.9 million 2017 to six million by 2027. fl
ymango.com fl
yairlink.com
kulula.com fl
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yexpress.aero
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PHOTO: PETE GODING
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