Nordwind Airlines is considering launching direct flights between Russia and South Africa, and Pretoria is awaiting information on a time frame. This information was provided by South Africa’s Ambassador to Russia, Mzuvukile Jeff Maketuka, in an interview. TASS.
According to him, the issue of direct flights between countries has not been resolved yet, and studies on this issue are continuing. The diplomat announced that at the beginning of 2022, Russia and South Africa consider Nordwind as the main carrier. “We are awaiting information on possible dates for the start of flights and whether Nordwind will continue this mission,” he said.
“We have reviewed the information regarding Nordwind airline and approved it. It was assumed that there would be four flights a week,” Maketuka stated. “These were planned to be flights Moscow – Johannesburg and Moscow – Cape Town.” The ambassador added that this was the latest information since negotiations on the start of flights were suspended and remained valid.
He said the parties started discussing the possibility of direct flights in 2020. Initially, the Russian government assumed that Aeroflot would be the carrier of these flights. Two years later, the candidate company for this position changed and new parameters were developed for the final decision. “We were hopeful that the process would begin as it was expected to become more affordable to fly to South Africa even in emergencies. Now it is a long and difficult 14-hour flight through the Middle East. This creates problems for tourism. At that time, Nordwind was at the forefront, but now the process has slowed down. Maybe the Russian Ministry of Transport is more knowledgeable about the current situation,” the diplomat emphasized.
He also recalled the words of Oleg Ozerov, Ambassador of the Russian Foreign Ministry and head of the secretariat of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum, who in the middle of last year expressed hope for the early start of air services between Russia and Africa. and South Africa.
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