South African Airways (SAA) and Kenya Airways start a discussion to create a pan-African airline group.
The two aviation companies have signed a cooperation agreement with a long-term view to establishing the group in a bid to stay competitive in the African aviation market, where they are a leading player along with Ethiopian Airlines, the most profitable African carrier, Emirates and EgyptAir.
The agreement does not offer an exclusivity that precludes either of the airlines from pursuing commercial cooperation with other carriers within the current route network strategy, according to Thomas Kgokolo, SAA’s Interim CEO.
"As well as being a strong local carrier, part of our broader growth strategy is to become a major player in regional travel, and this joint memorandum with Kenya Airways, one of the continent’s strongest and most respected carriers, will do just that," said Kgokolo.
The two have a plan to set up a joint working group to further discuss the agreement and to put in place systems to achieve their joint stated objectives, including standardisation of product and service offering that is in line with current global aviation trends.
