South African Airways ups Mumbai-Johannesburg services to 5 per week as Jet Airways quits

MUMBAI: The South African Airways quickly snapped up the opportunity left vacant by the departure of Jet Airways between Mumbai and Johannesburg, and announced one more weekly flight between the two cities from the existing four a week, beginning June 16, which would increase to six from August 21.

Jet Airways in a statement today said, "as part of its ongoing network evaluation with a clear focus on profitability, the airline has redeployed its assets on its existing route network, involving temporarily suspending its Mumbai-Johannesburg flights from June 11.

The Naresh Goel-promoted airline was the only domestic carrier connecting Mumbai with Johannesburg so far, apart from the code share arrangement that AI has with the South African Airways.

The national flag carrier Air India used to operate to Johannesburg a few years back but has only a code share arrangement with South African Airways.

"We have witnessed a steady performance with growth in leisure tourism and MICE tourism from this country, which presents an important market for us, and this increase in flight frequency is a step in the right direction to meet market expectations," South African Airways country manager for India Sajid Khan said.

While the fifth direct flight into Mumbai from Johannesburg is scheduled for June 16, the sixth frequency scheduled for August 21, is subject to government approval, he added.

Currently, the national flag carier of South Africa operates four flights a week between Mumbai and South African Airways on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The new service will be on Sundays, the airline said in a statement here.

The airline will deploy Airbus A330-200s on this sector, offering 186 economy and 36 business class seats.

As it increases its frequency to cater to the growing demand from this market, the airline will become the exclusive carrier flying direct from Mumbai to Johannesburg, the airline statement said.

The added frequency will help Indians flying to South America, as flying via Johannesburg is the shortest route to the continent. The ailrine flies thrice each to Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires.

Over the decades, South African Airways has evolved into one of the leading carriers in Africa, offering the biggest route network in the continent. With South Africa witnessing an upsurge of Indian tourists, the airline has revised their frequency to meet the growing demand.

In 2011, South Africa saw a 26.2 per cent rise in Indians visiting it over the previous year, with 90,367 Indians travelling to that country.

The South African Airways serves 20 destinations across the African continent and is a member of the largest global airline network Star Alliance.