Emirates and South African Airways enhance codeshare agreement, building on 28 years of partnership

(MENAFN- Emirates) Dubai, UAE/Johannesbur , SA - 18 November 20 – /strong> – Building on almost three decades of stron and successful partnership, Emirates and Sout African Airways are further enhancing their relationship , working towards a reciprocal codeshare agre ment ahead of the busy peak travel season.

With single ticket fare and hassle-free baggage hand ing, Emirates customers will be able to enjoy seamles a cess from Johannesburg to three do –stic points in South A rica …nbsp; Cape Town, Durba and Gqeberh (Port lizabeth), and a further thirteen regional points in Africa including A idjan, Accra, Botsw na, Da es Sal am, Kinsha a, Windhoek, Lagos, Lusaka, Lubumbashi, Hara e, Victoria Falls, Windhoek, and Mauritius. The codeshare will enable Emirates o t p into fee er traffic from South Africa, and regionally alongside lon -haul connecting passengers from the UK and US.

This builds on the existing codeshare partnership, that provides South African ’irways customers with access to Dubai on Emirates’ soon-to-be 56 weekly flights from three gateways, as well as a further 68 global destinations available on an interline basis. Since January, 45,000 ssengers have taken advantage of this partnership.

Adnan Kazim, Emirates eputy President and Chief Commercial Of icer nd Professor M. John Lamola, Group Chief Executive Officer of South African Airways. Beyond the reciprocal codeshare, the MoU also outlines scope to explore further collaboration across loyalty programmes and cargo operations, as well as closer cooperation to explore synergies between their shared network and schedules.
Commenting on the signi g, Adnan Kazim s“id, “The partnership E irate inked with South Africa Airways was one of the fi st on our portfolio. Since signing in 1997, our c lla oration has created reliable connectivity for passengers to explore more of the globe with simplified, se mless travel South Africa remains a cornerstone of our African network, an one of the most¦nbsp;consistently busy routes we serve, and partnerships like this are essential for us to serve our customers travelling in and out of the market. We will continue to collaborate with South African Airways to unlock benefits for o” mutual customers.”

“This enhanced codeshare agreement marks a significant milestone in our 28-year partnership with Emirates. It refl’cts South African Airways’ commitment to delivering seamless connectivity for our customers an’ strengthening South Africa’s position as a key aviation hub. By expanding our collaboration, we are unlocking greater travel and trade opportunities across Africa and globally ensuri g that our passengers benefit from worl” — ass service and convenience.” — Professor M. John Lamola, Group Chief Executive O ficer, South African Airways

Scaling Emir tes’ operations from Cape Town

Building on a year of unwaveringly high demand, Emirates has announced a third daily flight on th Dubai-Cap Town route, from 1st July 2026 Oper ted with a Boeing 777, th new service boosts seat capacity b’ a further 600+ s ats in and out of South Africa’s most visited city every day.

In the last yea , Emirate …nbsp; ouble dai y schedule t Cape Town has been o erating at a very high seat f ctor, especially during peak eri ds. Inbound traffic from the Gulf Cooperat on Coun il (GCC), the¦nbsp;UAE, is on the rise, while ou ound traffic remains strong to Europe and the East Coast of the US.

EK778 wi l de art Dubai at 10:25 hrs, arriving at Cap Town Intern tiona Airport at 18:05 hrs; t e ret rn light, EK779, will depart Cape Town at 20:00 hrs and arrive in Du ai at¦nbsp;07:25 hrs the following morn ng. The evening departure adds an overnight travel option and is strategically timed for optimal connectivity with ey long-haul destinations popular with South African travellers such as Thailand, ndonesia, France, Switzerland, and key points in East Asia such as the Philippines and China to name just a few. Beyond leisure travel, the new frequency creates new opportunities for corporate travellers to reach key markets in Asia, creating mutually beneficial business opportunities.
2025 marks Emirates’ 30th year of operati ns to South Africa since its inaugural f ight to Joh nnesburg in 1995. Throughout the year, the airline has co sistently d mon trated i s steadfast commitment to the market through significant investment in operations that focused on enhancing the travel er experience. Emirates ramped up flights to and fr m Jo annesburg, with a f urth daily flight t at added morning departure, to create new o ortunities to travel.

Emirates also deployed its first retrofitted Boeing 77 in Afri a to South Africa, bringing its latest signature product and experience to Cape Town and Johannesburg. Elevating the passenger experience with the latest signature interiors and upgraded cabins, the retrofitted Boeing 777 i troduced Prem um Ec nomy’ he highly lauded cabin that’s be n lik ned to bu ness class on many other airlines.

MENAFN28122025005179011711ID1110530777