FlySafair adds EL, Durban routes

Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Published Jun 24, 2015

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Johannesburg - Low cost carrier FlySafair has announced four additional routes to its existing domestic flight route network.

The new coastal destinations include Durban and East London. Ticket sales start at R399 and are available for purchase Wednesday at flysafair.co.za with flights starting in late October 2015.

Three weeks ago FlySafair launched a poll asking passengers to vote for a preferred new route. After an overwhelming response the airline chose to launch all four options including links from Johannesburg and Cape Town to Durban and East London.

FlySafair started selling tickets in July 2014 before taking to the skies in October of that year. The airline has experienced solid growth since launch and has recently surpassed its 450 000th passenger.

Whilst FlySafair is a relatively new passenger airline, the company is steeped in aviation history through parent company Safair, which was established in 1965. Safair conducts a broad range of aviation activities including specialist-chartered flights, flight-crew leasing and training and aviation safety to name a few.

Russell Jarvis, head of communications at online travel booking website, Travelstart, comments: “With Durban and East London now forming part of their route network, FlySafair is restoring much-needed air travel competitiveness to two of South Africa's most popular coastal cities. We are happy to finally see a true low cost carrier model in the country which has customers’ best interests at the forefront of their expansion strategy, as well as making domestic travel affordable for the public.

“FlySafair puts the consumer first by making air travel accessible and affordable to more and more South Africans,” says Elmar Conradie, CEO of FlySfair.

“Our on time performance, independently measured by the Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA), is rated best of all domestic airlines. Since the launch of FlySafair we’ve noted a marked increase in the performance of our competitors, which is excellent news for many South African consumers, who up until now were unable to afford local air travel. This is a solid indication that we are setting the bar higher in favour of the consumer.”

The airline will be adding two additional Boeing 737-400 aircraft to their operational fleet to accommodate the extended schedule. This will bring their total fleet up to six aircraft. The airline is also presently in negotiations to add an additional three aircraft in the New Year.

FlySafair has reduced local air fares by up to 39 percent on certain routes, and has witnessed up to a 132 percent increase in demand on others.

Adapted from a press release for IOL

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