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Private regional airline Airlink seeks to intercept a meeting of creditors to vote on the proposed corporate bailout plan for South African Airways.
- The private company SA Airlink has officially changed its name to Airlink.
- The company wants to put distance between it and its former partner for more than 20 years, SA Airways.
- Airlink now flies between Cape Town and Johannesburg, and between Johannesburg and Durban, and has formed partnerships with major international airlines.
- For more articles, go to www.businessinsider.co.za.
The private airline formerly known as SA Airlink has officially changed its name to Airlink.
This is part of its strategy to distinguish itself as a fully independent airline, the company said in a statement.
Airlink has been associated with SAA for more than 20 years, an agreement that allowed SAA to sell tickets and carry passengers on Airlink flights.
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But earlier this year, Airlink terminated its franchise agreement after SAA jumped to the commercial rescue and paid no more than R700 million in revenue from tickets issued on flights operated by Airlink.
Since then, Airlink has established so-called “interline agreements” with Qatar Airways, Emirates, British Airways, KLM, Air France and United.
The agreements allow passengers to book connecting flights through either carrier. Travelers will not have to book connecting flights separately.
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Since Airlink has new flights Johannesburg-Cape Town and Johannesburg-Durban, this means that passengers can book a single ticket for a long-haul flight around the world. Airlink also flies to more than 20 regional destinations in South Africa, including Gaborone, Maun, Tete, Port Elizabeth, Lusaka, Harare, and Victoria Falls.
Airlink flights are now sold on www.flyairlink.com and no longer through the SAA website.
“The subtle but significant name change is a key element of our repositioning, recovery and growth strategy,” said Airlink CEO and Managing Director Rodger Foster.
“It should be seen alongside recent business developments, including interline agreements, the launch of our own major domestic services in South Africa, and new regional routes linking Johannesburg with Maputo and Windhoek. Airlink plans to announce additional new and re-established routes in the coming weeks and months.
The new brand will also launch soon, the company said.
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