South African Airways to restart regional flights from September
In a small but significant step toward the return of normal international travel, South African Airways will restart commercial flights from Sep. 23 for the first time in more than a year — but only within the African continent.
The airline has long struggled to be profitable, particularly on long-haul routes where it's faced fierce competition from Middle Eastern carriers such as Emirates and Qatar Airways. The airline has also received hundreds of millions of dollars in the form of local government bailouts and debt guarantees.
Before the pandemic, South African Airways operated flights to such major international hubs as New York-JFK, London (LHR) and Frankfurt (FRA).
Flights to Hong Kong (HKG), Munich (MUC) and São Paulo (SAO) were cut before the pandemic even began.
Related: Where's the menu? A review of South African Airways biz class on the A350, New York to Johannesburg
South African aviation regulators have now restored the Star Alliance members' operating license, allowing it to rebuild some of its route network. The airline is starting slowly with flights from its Johannesburg (JNB) hub to Cape Town (CPT), Accra (ACC), Kinshasa (FIH), Harare (HRE), Lusaka (LUN) and Maputo (MPM).
The airline had previously been majority-owned by the South African government, though in June 2021 a majority take was sold to a local jet-leasing company, Global Airways, and private-equity firm Harith General Partners.
If you're hoping to see South African Airways return to long-haul flying, the airline is taking a "wait and see" approach — as is the case with international travel in general. The new owners have confirmed the South African government has no more financial obligations to the airline, and that route networks will be further restored when, and if, demand recovers following the coronavirus pandemic.
Ticket sales for the resumed regional routes are now on sale.
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The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
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- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month