South African Airways (SAA) is making steady progress in implementing its turnaround plans to lead the company to financial sustainability. Network optimisation and development is an important part of the airline’s turnaround strategy. In November SAA embarked on network and route rationalisation programme. Part of that programme was the revitalisation of all alliance and partnerships including interline and codeshare agreements.

Over the past six months SAA has been on roadshow to meet its major codeshare partners and other potential commercial partners to revitalise the commercial delivery under the existing agreements and explore mutually beneficial opportunities to expand the network.

In these meetings with other airlines, SAA also discussed possibilities of these airlines taking our excess cabin and flight deck crew on contract basis as part of our turnaround strategy implementation.

SAA has met Emirates, Turkish Airways, Qatar Airways, Kenya Airways, Air Mauritius, Unite Airlines and Singapore Airlines. These discussions have been purely about commercial agreements such as interline, codeshare, cargo as well as possibilities of these airlines taking some of our excess flight deck and cabin crew staff.

We have not discussed any possibility of them investing in SAA as part of SEP process.