South African Airways enters into a new code share agreement with Virgin Australia

 
JOHANNESBURG. 6 February 2014. South African Airways (SAA), Africa’s leading airline, today announced a new code share agreement with Virgin Australia, one of Australia’s largest domestic airlines.

SAA flies daily between Johannesburg and Perth and this new partnership offers SAA customers expanded access across Australia to domestic destinations such as Melbourne, Brisbane, and Adelaide.
The code share is open for sale from tomorrow, 7 February, for travel from 11 February.

“Through the code share agreement with Virgin Australia, our valued customers will gain new travel choices to primary markets across Australia via Virgins’ extensive network and hubs in Perth and Melbourne, providing seamless travel, and earning of miles through the Voyager frequent flyer programme,” says Kendy Phohleli, SAA General Manager Commercial (Acting).

“In addition customers travelling to Africa from Australia using Virgin Australia services will have access to the most comprehensive network on the African continent.”

Virgin Australia has been an interline partner of SAA since July 2010 where the two airlines had a commercial agreement to handle those customers travelling on both airlines. SAA is now expanding this relationship into a code share agreement.

“This new partnership forms part of Gaining Altitude, our Long-Term Turnaround Strategy, which seeks to broaden SAA’s network through alliances and strategic partnerships.

“Implementing a code share agreement with Virgin Australia offers our customers travelling on SAA to Perth, Australia, more travel options to other Australian cities. We are looking forward to strengthening our partnership with Virgin Australia through this new code share agreement,” says Phohleli.

Customers will also have the benefit of through checking their baggage and receiving boarding passes from Johannesburg to their end destination in Australia, and onto any destination in Africa served by SAA when flying from Australia. Voyager members will continue to earn their miles for their entire itinerary.

Tickets for the new code share flights can be purchased online at www.flysaa.com, through travel agents, the airlines’ sales offices, or South African Airways’ call centre at +27 11 978 5313.
 
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About South African Airways

 
South African Airways (SAA), Africa’s most awarded airline, operates to 40 destinations worldwide.

In its domestic market SAA has an extensive schedule operating 556 flights in total per week between Johannesburg – Cape Town, Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth, from its Johannesburg hub, as well as code-shared flights between Lanseria – Cape Town and Durban. SAA offers more frequencies than any other airline in South Africa.

Regionally, SAA offers 24 destinations across the African continent including Abidjan, Accra, Blantyre, Brazzaville, Cotonou, Dakar, Dar es Salaam, Douala, Entebbe, Harare, Kinshasa, Lagos, Libreville, Lilongwe, Livingstone, Luanda, Lusaka, Maputo, Mauritius, Nairobi, Ndola, Pointe Noire, Victoria Falls and Windhoek.

SAA’s international network creates links to all major continents from South Africa through 11 direct routes and code shares, with daily flights from Johannesburg to London (Heathrow), Frankfurt, Munich, Mumbai, Perth, Hong Kong, Beijing, New York, Washington, Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires. SAA has codes share agreements with 27 other airlines across the markets it serves. The airline has extended its code share agreement with Mango, its low cost operator, to also include coastal cities in South Africa (between Johannesburg and Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth and George), as well as Johannesburg – Bloemfontein; Cape Town - Bloemfontein and Cape Town  - Port Elizabeth.

SAA’s core business is the provision of passenger airline and cargo transport services together with related services, which are provided through SAA and its four wholly owned subsidiaries: SAA Technical; Mango its low cost carrier; Air Chefs, the catering entity of SAA and South African Travel Centre (SATC).

SAA is a Star Alliance member which offers more than 21,900 daily flights to 1,328 airports in 195 countries. SAA is the winner of the 'Best Airline in Africa’ Award in the regional category for eleven consecutive years. Mango and SAA hold the number one and number two successive spots as South Africa’s most on-time airlines.
 
About Virgin Australia
 

Virgin Australia (ASX: VAH) launched in 2000 and has since established itself as a contemporary, full service airline, with a reputation for exceptional customer service.

The airline employs more than 9,500 people in Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Virgin Australia has four strategic alliances providing customers with access to over 440 destinations worldwide. Its domestic and international operations are complemented by Virgin Samoa, a joint venture airline with the Government of Samoa.

Virgin Australia operates a modern fleet of over 137 that include Airbus A330, Boeing 777, Boeing 737, Embraer E190, ATR-72 turboprop aircraft, Airbus A320, Fokker 100 and Fokker 50 aircraft that fly to 44 Australian destinations and 17 international destinations including the United States of America, United Arab Emirates, New Zealand, Indonesia, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu and the Cook Islands
 
 
For more information contact:
 
SAA
Tlali Tlali                                                                      
SAA spokesperson                                                                               
Mob:     +27 82 333 3880                                               
Email:    TlaliTlali@flysaa.com