New low-cost flights launching for SA travellers

Budget airline FlySafair has been awarded licences to operate flights on a number of new routes. This means that South Africans can take advantage of low-cost flights to several new travel destinations in the near future.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the collapse of airlines such as Kulula, Mango and British Airways operated by Comair led to a slow-down in demand for travel.

ZANZIBAR FLIGHTS LAUNCHED

FlySafair will soon be launching scheduled flights between Johannesburg and the Indian Ocean island of Zanzibar. The island is a perennial favourite among SA travellers who have been without direct flights to the island for a lengthy period since Mango Airlines was grounded.

There have been no direct services on this route for almost two years, effectively making trips to the island more time-consuming and expensive for SA travellers.

 FlySafair has secured the rights to operate three scheduled direct flights per week,  between Johannesburg and Zanzibar. The airline said the Zanzibar service should be up and running reasonably soon, thanks to an existing charter arrangement. 

MORE NEW ROUTES

The airline has been granted rights to start daily flights on two other regional routes – Johannesburg to Windhoek and Johannesburg to Harare.

Schedules for these two destinations are likely to begin later this year, in time for the holiday season.

Once all permissions and logistical arrangements have been finalised FlySafair would be able to offer daily flights to Windhoek and Harare from both Johannesburg and Cape Town, the airline said.

MORE FLIGHTS TO MAURITIUS

Island lovers will be pleased to hear that FlySafair was also awarded five additional frequencies on the Mauritius route, in addition to the two weekly flights it already operates.

Tourism Update states that the airline could potentially offer daily flights from Johannesburg, in the future.

FLYSAFAIR EXPANSION

The company which launched domestic services in October 2014 is fast becoming a respected carrier with a growing presence in the region.

FlySafair has achieved rapid growth over the past 10 months. The budget airline has added new aircraft to its fleet as well as hired a number of new staff members to accommodate this expansion.

The airline is set to receive three more aircraft before the end of March. These will be deployed on the new routes which will be launched this year. 

“We are thrilled to have received this news,” said Gordon. “We’ve already begun laying the groundwork in several of our target countries and are in discussions with various parties, including civil aviation authorities, to get these new routes up and running as soon as possible.”

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