GEORGE NEWS - From tomorrow, Friday 8 September, FlySafair will offer flights between Cape Town and George three days a week, adding more options to the daily flights already on offer by Airlink.
According to Kirby Gordon, a spokesperson for the airline, FlySafair will be flying on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays.
On Thursdays and Fridays, FA190 from Cape Town to George will leave at 14:35 and arrive at 15:35. FA191 from George back to Cape Town will leave at 16:10 and arrive at 17:10.
On Sundays, FA192 will fly from Cape Town to George at 10:00 and arrive at 11:00. FA191 from George back to Cape Town will leave at 11:35 and arrive at 12:35.
Asked why FlySafair is entering this market, he said, "We're basing an additional aircraft in Cape Town for operations from that hub and needed to include a shorter line of flying into the schedule in order to achieve best efficiencies on aircraft and crew utilisation, and while still a lightly traded route for an aircraft of our size, the Cape Town to George leg is one of the most viable short hops from that base, so we thought to give it a go and see what we can achieve there."
At this stage, schedules are published up until late March 2024, and almost the whole fleet and crew are utilised to maximum capacity. "That said, as we get slightly closer to the peak periods, we will assess aircraft availabilities around maintenance schedules and crew availabilities regarding training and determine if we can squeeze in a few extra flights here and there," Gordon said.
"These are most likely to be on the more heavily traded routes at those times like George to Johannesburg, so it's not very likely that this route will get more capacity, but it all depends on how it performs leading up to that time. And if it does very well this summer, it will have a stronger case next summer for additional capacity if it's available on a tactical basis."
Leon van Wyk, mayor of George, said the introduction of George-Cape Town flights by FlySafair is a welcome addition as competition will add to the existing good service that Airlink already provides. Additional options will encourage tourism and ease business access, especially if prices are attractive. Flying also saves on the five-hour road trip.
According to a monthly report compiled by the Western Cape Government's official trade, investment and tourism promotion agency, Wesgro, international two-way passengers through Cape Town International Airport between January and July 2023 reached 1,6 million, growing by 69% compared with the same period in 2022.
George Airport two-way passengers reached 449 837 between January and July 2023. That is a 3% year-on-year increase compared with the same period in 2022.
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