Sodurba and the city react to SAA flight route cancellation
eThekwini noted its 10-year milestone that it celebrated last year of Emirates direct flights to Durban ferrying over 2 million passengers and thousands of tons of cargo on the route since the first take off in October 2009.
THE Mayor of eThekwini Municipality, Mxolisi Kaunda, noted with disappointment the decision by the national carrier, South African Airways (SAA) to suspend operations on the Durban to Johannesburg route.
Kaunda echoed the sentiments of the provincial premier, Sihle Zikalala, that the national carrier did not take cognisance of the adverse implications, more especially the economic ramifications.
The 2019/20 tourism annual figures indicate that Durban visitor attendance increased by 4 per cent domestic and down by 1 per cent international.
“During the festive season in Durban (1 December 2019 to 16 January 2020) over a million visitors came to our city of which 250 000 were day visitors and majority of them are from Gauteng. This is a clear indication that the Johannesburg to Durban route is lucrative,” said Kaunda.
Following the announcement, local tourism authority, Sodurba, reacted to the news.
Speaking to the SUN, vice-chair lady of the organisation, Melissa Lee, said as a provincial whale coast with Whale Heritage Site status, the SAA Durban route cancellation will drastically affect this accreditation limiting the access to “this beautiful site and our area”.
“The potential economic impact on the South Durban Basin and eThekwini as a whole is tremendous and will be embraced by all stakeholders who will benefit from the steering committee’s achievement.”
“Only two such sites exist in the world and the Bluff is one of them. This can be a strategic job creator and investment opportunity in our city and community.”
“Given the difficult economic climate and high unemployment rate such an opportunity should be widely embraced,” said Lee.
The city also noted its 10-year milestone that it celebrated last year of Emirates direct flights to Durban ferrying over 2 million passengers and thousands of tons of cargo on the route since the first take off in October 2009.
“Last year we also introduced the direct flights between London and Durban by British Airways.”
“Therefore, we fully support the premier’s call for SAA to review its decision as it goes against government commitment to grow economy and create much-needed jobs,” said Kaunda.
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