South African Airlines
South African Airlines is the principal airline of South Africa that offers both international as well as domestic flights. The airline is known by the name Suid-Afrikaanse Lugdiens in the Afrikaans language, which is spoken in South Africa. But this name was taken out of service from 1997 onwards. Owned completely by the government of South Africa, the airline is a member of the Star Alliance as well as the Voyager frequent flyer program.
The South African Airlines came into being in 1934 with the name of Union Airways. It was setup by the government of South Africa. The first decade saw the airlines operate to limited destinations like Uganda and Kenya. The first European destination flight was initiated in 1945, but it was not until 1970s that the first South African Airlines flight landed on an Asian airports. Hong Kong was the first of SAA’s Asian destination.
In March 2009, South African Airlines had a total of 88 airplanes that served around 37 cities across the globe. Even if the operations of the airlines are based in Johannesburg along with its technical facility, the main bases for the company are located at the Cape Town International Airport and the Tambo International Airport.
It is headquartered at Airways Park in Tambo International Airport. Boeing 737-800 is the most generally used aircraft in its fleet with 17 planes. With addition to serving African cities, the airlines has a number of international flight services to Frankfurt, Mumbai, London, Munich, Buenos Aires, New York, Perth, Washington and Sao Paulo. All the flights of SAA serve more than 7 million passengers annually.
After facing a loss in 2007, South African Airlines emerged as a profitable enterprise in the year 2008. from a heavy loss of $883 million in 2007, which was accounted to for the restructuring expenses, the airlines jumped back the next year to post $123 million in net profits, this despite the fact that it had the same 75% passenger load as of the previous year.
But in 2008, the domestic flights of the South African Airlines grew by more than twenty seven percent over 2007. The restructuring process carried out by the company in 2007-2008 was initiated in order to enhance the cost-effectiveness of its operations, an initiative which was triggered by the huge loss of approximately $9 billion in the year 2004.
The SAA has some unique features in its line of fleets. It outfitted all of its aircraft’s business class seats, leaving the A319 and 737s, with Lie-Flat mechanisms that permitted stretching the seats by 180 degrees. The seats in 737’s economy class, at 17.2 inches, are only half an inch smaller in width as compared to the business class seats, and they are able to stretch out by 3.6 inches, as compared to the 5 inch capacity of seats in business class.It is only the flight services of South African Airlines in the country that give passengers the convenience of continuous flight to different countries without having to switch between airlines.
The South African Airlines was re-branded in the year 1997, shedding its springbok emblem and the white, orange and blue colors. The new insignia derived from the new national flag of the country along with the Sun. The airlines even initiated online ticket booking and went into alliance with South African Express and South African Airlink. In order to celebrate the spirit of the new rainbow nation, Ndizani, one among the 747-300s was decorated completely in dazzling colors.
Since, Ndizani has been taken out of service; there have been requests from passengers to decorate a new South African Airlines aircraft in the remarkable colors again. In the year 1998, the SAA services to Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires were restored, but were closed for Copenhagen Airport.
From 1999 onwards code sharing between SAA and Delta Air Lines initiated for South African Airways flights between South Africa and Atlanta. In the year 2000, SAA started its flights to Fort Lauderdale Airport and ordered 21 Boeing 737 jets for their domestic flights. In 2001, SAA signed code sharing with Nigeria Airways, with their 747s providing flight services from the U.S. to Lagos. The same year Air Cargo News awarded SAA with the Best Cargo Airline to Africa award, despite it being a major passenger airline.
The South African Airlines also appeared in the top ten international airlines list in the Zagat Survey’s and went online with its website. In 2002, SAA overhauled its entire fleet from Airbus and Boeing. South African Airlines took a 49% share in Air Tanzania in late 2002, which was its first foreign acquisition. But this merger lasted only up to 2006, with the new management scrapping the stake. In 2004, SAA joined the Star Alliance, only to become the full-fledged member in 2006.