Ramaphosa says a new international flight for South Africa is coming

President Cyril Ramaphosa revealed that South Africa is looking to restore direct flights to India in an effort to strengthen its ties with one of the world’s fastest-growing economies.

In his latest newsletter, the president spoke about his trip to New Delhi for the 18th BRICS Summit, emphasizing the need for South Africa to broaden its political and economic ties.

“To turn this potential into practical partnerships, we are keen to restore direct flights between South Africa and India. We also need closer working relationships between our business chambers,” he said.

This comes two years after the Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) spoke about its intention to re-establish direct air services between South Africa and India.

In 2024, then-ACSA CEO Mpumi Mpofu said that the relaunch of direct travel services between South Africa and the sub-continent was necessary and that the company expected results by the end of the year.

“I’ve got to tell you that it is imminent. By the time we wrap up 2024, this issue will be behind us.” Mpofu said.

She said that one of the biggest challenges was South Africa’s diplomatic relationship with India, noting that the Department of Transport was in negotiations with the foreign state.

This included agreements on flight frequencies and designating a national air carrier to operate the direct route.

“We used to have a peer relationship with India and had flights on SAA to Mumbai, but what happened over the years, and I’ll say it like it is, there was a problem with a dedicated airline from India who eventually exited the space,” she said.

She revealed that no airline had been willing to commit to restart direct flights between the two countries.

South African Airways used to offer direct flights to India until it dropped the route in 2015. The state-owned airline later went into business rescue in 2019 and only emerged in 2021.

Since then, SAA has slowly been rebuilding its former domestic and international flight network. It currently operates a fleet of 19 aircraft serving 17 destinations.

One cited reason for the lack of interest from airlines is visa requirements. SAA CCO Tebogo Tsimane said that Indian passport holders need visas to visit South Africa, which hurts tourism.

South African passport holders also need a visa to enter India, but can obtain an e-visa online at no additional cost.

In September 2025, ACSA announced that South Africa was drawing closer to establishing a direct flight between Johannesburg and Mumbai.

It said that, following delays caused by aircraft shortages, SAA was aiming to resume operations in India in 2026.

ACSA’s Acting Group Manager for Traffic Development, Mpho Rambau, previously told Tourism Update that they had achieved some success in building a value proposition for airlines to establish the route.

“We have presented the business case to multiple carriers and are in advanced stages of dialogue with select partners,” said Rambau.

“We have undertaken in-depth market studies, including traffic flow and passenger demand analysis, to demonstrate the commercial viability. This data-driven approach has been key in building the business case for airlines.”

The bilateral agreement between the two countries has a capacity allocation of 28 weekly flights, which ACSA said was “more than enough” to serve the current demand of around 126,000 annual passengers.

The airports company said that while Joburg-to-Mumbai was the focus, it was also looking at connections between Mumbai, Cape Town, and Durban.

“Our medium- to long-term strategy for India is to have all three routes connecting Mumbai to Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. Delhi-Johannesburg is one of our long-term targets owing to strong demand for air travel and trade,” said Rambau.