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The reduction in flights comes amid a worrying resurgence in coronavirus infections in South Africa.
- A growing list of countries is limiting travel to and from South Africa since a more transmissible variant of the coronavirus was announced in December.
- Emirates announced this week a 13-day suspension on all South African routes for “operational reasons.”
- South Africa has recorded nearly 1.3 million cases and more than 35,500 deaths since March, the highest on the continent.
Several international airlines have simplified their flights to South Africa this week following travel restrictions aimed at limiting the spread of a new variant of the coronavirus that fuels a rapid resurgence of the infection.
A growing list of countries is limiting travel to and from South Africa since a more transmissible variant of the virus, dubbed 501Y.V2, was announced in December.
New border closures have forced major airlines to suspend or reduce flights in and out of Africa’s most industrialized economy.
Emirates announced this week a 13-day suspension on all South African routes for “operational reasons.”
KLM said it had to modify its schedules after the Dutch government restricted travel from South Africa to Amsterdam, forcing the company to cancel several flights this week.
Lufthansa also told AFP that it was “adjusting its flight schedule” to South Africa to “reduce demand.”
The reduction comes amid a worrying resurgence in coronavirus infections in South Africa, widely attributed to 501Y.V2, which forced authorities to impose a new set of restrictions in December.
Concern over escalating infections led the South African Ministry of Education on Friday to delay the start of the school year by two weeks until February 15.
“This is done to bring relief to the health system that is already struggling to cope with the current demands,” Deputy Minister of Basic Education Reginah Mhaule said in a statement.
South Africa has recorded nearly 1.3 million cases and more than 35,500 deaths since March, the highest on the continent.
In January alone, more than 240,000 infections and 6,000 deaths were reported.
The surge in cases, which began in southern South Africa, has quickly affected the most populous province of Gauteng, home to the financial center of Johannesburg and the capital Pretoria.
Prime Minister David Makhura warned this week that coronavirus-related deaths had skyrocketed as a result.
“When we do a weekly comparison, we see that the number of people succumbing to Covid-19 is increasing significantly,” Makhura said during an update on the province’s health response.
Gauteng, one of the epicenters of the South African outbreak during its first wave of infection, accounts for more than a quarter of the country’s cases and 18% of deaths.
