South African Airways resumes operations after one year of inactivity
South African Airways has returned to the skies today September 23rd, 2021 after a year of inactivity.
The carrier, which ceased all commercial and cargo repatriation flights between March and September 2020, has announced that it will re-launch flights on its domestic routes first before going regional.
The airline’s local flights will take off on Thursday with at least three trips per day between Johannesburg to Cape Town each way, TW has gathered.
As for regional flights, the airline said it will begin from Johannesburg to Ghana, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo starting on Monday (27 September).
The Interim Chief Executive Officer, SAA, Thomas Kgokolo, said, “After months of diligent work, we are delighted that SAA is resuming service and we look forward to welcoming on board our loyal passengers and flying the South African flag. We continue to be a safe carrier and adhering to COVID-19 protocols.”
The airline entered business rescue proceedings in December, 2019, when it was declared financially insolvent.
Since then, there has been less local capacity, giving rise to high cost of flight tickets.
On returning to the skies, the airline is already crashing the high prices, paving way for more competitive pricing and increasing capacity on the routes.
Kgokolo confirmed that flights may be about 80 per cent full, as indicated by figures from ticket sales.
He added, “There is a profound feeling of enthusiasm within Team SAA as we prepare for takeoff, with one common purpose -to rebuild and sustain a profitable airline that once again takes a leadership role among local, continental, and international airlines.”
The airline exited ‘business rescue’ in April 2021, before the South African government agreed to sell its majority stake to Takatso Consortium in June.
According to the SAA Board Chairperson, John Lamola, the airline had now turned a corner from its previous struggles and would better serve its consumers.
“We have reduced our staff complement considerably and now have a lean efficient fleet of aircraft numbering eight, from a previous thirty-two. Many parts of SAA’s repurposing have been difficult and painful at times, but our overriding dictum has been a sense of responsibility to the taxpayer and a promise that we will not go back to where we once were,” said Lamola.
