SAA spreads its wings with direct flights to Perth
The inaugural flight from Johannesburg to Perth is scheduled to take off in April, with bookings already having opened.
A South African Airways airlines logo seen displayed on a smartphone screen over a map of Europe in Athens, Greece on February 12, 2023. Picture: Nikolas Kokovlis / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFP
JOHANNESBURG - South African Airways (SAA) has announced the return of direct flights to Perth, in Australia, starting 28 April.
SAA’s operations ground to a halt in 2019, after the State carrier was placed under business rescue.
The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic further deterred the embattled airline’s recovery efforts.
It was, however, officially relaunched in October when the first intercontinental flight to São Paulo, in Brazil, was also reintroduced.
There will then be three out-bound flights a week departing from OR Tambo International Airport.
There will also be three in-bound flights each week, departing from Perth.
For the launch phase, SAA says it will be using an Airbus A340 – 300, with 38 business class seats and 215 economy seats.
The airline describes the aircraft as “a marvel in the global skies” and “synonymous with being spacious, comfortable, reliable, and capable of handling long-distance flights with ease”.