Qatar Airways to increase weekly flights to Cape Town, Johannesburg

Qatar Airways will be launching additional flights to two of its key destinations in South Africa – Johannesburg and Cape Town – next month, Qatar Airways vice-president of Doha Sales Martha Paulos has said. From 19 weekly flights, she said the award-winning airline will be increasing the number of weekly flights to Johannesburg to 21 by the end of October this year. “Looking back to January 2005, it is now almost 15 years since we launched our first South African route to the city of Johannesburg. Since then, our presence in South Africa has enjoyed steady growth and continues to go from strength to strength,” Paulos said.She was speaking at a travel workshop organised by Qatar Airways and South African Tourism Board, in conjunction with the South African embassy in Doha, held at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre on September 19.According to Paulos, the weekly service between Doha and Johannesburg started with four flights in 2005 and has grown to 19 today.“As the largest city in South Africa, Johannesburg has emerged as one of our key destinations for both leisure and business travellers alike,” she noted.Paulos added that Qatar Airways will also increase its weekly service between Doha and Cape Town from seven to 10 by the end of October.“Similarly, the beautiful city of Cape Town is another hugely popular destination with our customers. Offering a unique combination of nature, culture and wildlife, it attracts visitors from both Qatar and around the globe,” she said.Qatar Airways, Paulos noted, added Durban to its network in 2015 and currently provides a four times-a-week service to what she described as a “vibrant coastal city”, via Johannesburg.“Our continued investment and confidence in our South African routes is a testament to the fact that not only are we are committed to serving the people of South Africa, by connecting them to the world via our global network of over 160 destinations, but also to bringing visitors from around the world to the region itself,” she added.“Over the course of our relationship, we have promoted South Africa across a wide range of feeder markets around the globe, enabling agents to readily promote the benefits of travelling to this captivating country,” Paulos said.Earlier this year, she noted that Qatar Airways won the Skytrax Airline of the Year award for a record fifth time, making it the most awarded airline ever to fly into South Africa. “We use our state-of-the art Airbus A350 and Boeing B787 Dreamliner aircraft to service the routes, allowing passengers to travel in both comfort and style,” Paulos said, adding that passengers flying on Qatar Airways’ South African flights can access Wi-Fi onboard.