LONDON – British Airways has announced a new codeshare agreement with South African regional airline Airlink.
The partnership will improve connectivity between the UK, Europe, North America and more than 15 destinations in Southern Africa.
With bases in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban in South Africa, Airlink is a premium regional airline with a wide-reaching network of cities in 14 countries. Its network spans South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia.
Connections via Cape Town and Johannesburg
The agreement means British Airways’ customers travelling from or transiting through London will be able to connect to their final destination via Cape Town or Johannesburg on a single ticket.
This will offer more choice and flexibility for those travelling onwards to one of 18 towns and cities, such as Windhoek in Namibia and Durban in South Africa.
British Airways currently flies twice daily between London Heathrow and Johannesburg with A380 aircraft and twice daily between London Heathrow and Cape Town with B777 and A350 aircraft.
A further thrice weekly service operates between London Gatwick and Cape Town with B777 aircraft.
Members of British Airways’ loyalty programme, the Executive Club, can earn Avios when flying on Airlink flights on a British Airways’ codeshare journey.
Avios is the programme’s currency, which can be used as part-payment towards Reward Flights or upgrades, as well as hotel stays, car hire and more.
Neil Chernoff, British Airways’ Director of Network and Alliances, said: “Our flights to Cape Town and Johannesburg continue to be as popular as ever with our customers, so we’re pleased to be able to open up more options in the Southern African region.”
“Our partnership with Airlink means that customers will be able to book a full journey on one ticket, allowing seamless travel all the way from London to their final destination.”
Airlink’s CEO and Managing Director, Rodger Foster, said: “This is an important next step in our partnership with British Airways, which has a phenomenal global reach into the most important markets for our region.”
“The marriage of our two networks will benefit both British Airways’ and Airlink’s customers, giving them even more choice with a wide range of itinerary options and connectivity possibilities.”
In total, 18 destinations are available as codeshare options when travelling with the national flag carrier from Heathrow via Johannesburg and Cape Town. Examples include:
- London Heathrow to Durban via Johannesburg
- London Heathrow to Port Elizabeth, South Africa, via Cape Town or Johannesburg
- London Heathrow to Skukuza, South Africa via Cape Town or Johannesburg
- London Heathrow to Windhoek, Namibia via Cape Town or Johannesburg
- London Heathrow to Walvis Bay, Namibia via Cape Town or Johannesburg
About Airlink
Airlink was established in 1992 and is an independent, privately-owned, premium airline.
Choice and reliability are Airlink hallmarks, with the airline serving more than 45 destinations in 14 countries throughout Southern Africa, Madagascar, St Helena and Ascension islands.
Airlink has consistently been the most on-time domestic airline over the last three years, with its fleet of more than 60 modern jetliners achieving a 95.52% average on-time performance in 2022.
Airlink is an International Air Transport Association (IATA) member and accredited under its safety audit programme.
