There is some hope for South Africans looking to travel.
As more and more airlines disappear from our skies there is some hope for travellers as low-cost airline FlySafair has now received authority to operate flights to 11 new destinations.
So where can you fly with FlySafair now?
The Air Services Licensing Council of South Africa approved the following new destinations:
Flights from Cape Town and Guateng to Victoria Falls, Luanda (Angola), Maputo (Mozambique), Lusaka (Zambia), Gaborone (Botswana), Livingston (Zambia).
It should be noted that the airline will also have more frequent flights from Gauteng to the Seychelles, Nairobi and Bulawayo. And for those travelling from Cape Town, there will be more flights to Windhoek, Namibia.
There is a possibility of routes to Mauritius and Zanzibar but the application of these flights is still pending and up for approval.
Kirby Gordon, chief marketing officer of FlySafair, said to News24 that “while this is a big milestone, there is still a fair amount of work ahead of us from an operational perspective. By launching a host of new services, we hope to provide passengers with more options for air travel at a competitive price."
Price point
Business Report did a basic price comparison between FlySafair and South African Airways to fly to Mauritius.
To book a flight for one person departing at O.R. Tambo International Airport and arriving in Mauritius in the Month of October, (using Flexi-dates) we have to say that FlySafair came out cheaper.
The lowest fair for flying to Mauritius was R3950 on FlySafair whereas on SAA, the lowest fair was R5560,40.
Not the only bird in the sky
Last month it was announced that Air Belgium would enter the South Africa market, marking the airline’s first foray into Africa.
Air Belgium operates flights between Belgium and South Africa. The company said in a statement to Business Report that it had signed a collaboration agreement with Airlink, which will fly its passengers on domestic flights in SA and on its regional flights to destinations in 13 other countries.
According to a statement, flights aboard the airline’s modern A330neo will depart Brussels every Wednesday and Sunday at 19:45 – arriving in Johannesburg at 7:15 the next day, with a continuation to Cape Town.
South Africans heading to Europe will be able to fly from Cape Town International (with a short stop in Johannesburg), or from OR Tambo every Monday and Thursday. The flights offer 30 seats in Business Class, 21 seats in Premium Class, and 235 Economy Class seats.
According to Air Belgium, flight fares start at R 11,569 for an all-in return ticket between Johannesburg and Brussels and passengers are allowed 30 kg baggage allowance free.
Here is a list of airlines operating in South Africa
Commercial Airlines
- Airlink
- CemAir
- FlySafair
- LIFT Airline
- South African Airways
BUSINESS REPORT