South African Airways (SAA) has announced its decision to suspend all its domestic flights with effect from Friday 27th March until 16th April 2020 (inclusive). The decision came after the South African government announced a nation-wide lockdown for 21 days aimed at combatting the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Last Friday, SAA announced the suspension of all intercontinental and Africa regional flights until 31 May 2020.
A new updated re-booking policy that applies across SAA’s route network including domestic, regional and international flights, now provides for changes for a period up until March 2022.
This new policy until 2022 goes beyond the industry norm, where tickets are usually valid for 12 months for international travel. For passengers, a summary of the new rebooking policy can be found at flysaa.com and for members of the travel industry.
“For South African Airways customers in the UK we regret that we have temporarily closed our telephone lines due to the COVID-19 pandemic and are handling all customer and trade enquiries via email. If passengers have booked through a travel agent we advise them to contact their agent directly for changes to their travel plans,” a statement read.
“We are advising all passengers to check www.Dirco.gov.za for updates from the South African Government Department of International Relations and Cooperation for essential guidance on entry into South Africa and to the acceptance of international transit passengers and www.gov.uk/foreign travel advice for updates from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office. We are handling all customer and trade enquiries via email by prioritising passengers who were booked to travel in the next seven days“.
Customers can send their email enquiry to Saauk@flysaa.com and they will respond shortly.
South African Airways (SAA) suspension to operations was in response to a government travel ban aimed at stopping the transmission of the Coronavirus (Covid-19). Following the declaration of the State of Disaster in South Africa, the government announced a travel ban and issued regulations, which introduced certain measures aimed at combatting the spread or transmission of the virus.
