Nigerian carriers missing as SAA signs flight pact with Ghana’s AWA
South African Airways (SAA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with a Ghanaian carrier, Africa World Airlines (AWA), to deepen connectivity in Africa.
It would be recalled that SAA and AWA formed a relationship in 2015, which resulted in the commencement of the Accra to Washington Dulles flights.
SAA operates daily flights between Johannesburg and Accra, with four of the flights continuing onwards to Washington; and the other three flights continue onwards to Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire.
The interline agreement allows the acceptance of each other’s customers and access to each other’s network.
A statement indicated that with the pact, SAA customers will fly from Accra on SAA operated flights and then connect to further destinations on flights operated by AWA.
Over the coming months, the interline agreement will evolve into a code share agreement, SAA said, with its customers traveling on one ticket from Johannesburg to Accra, or from Washington to Accra, and onwards to a number of destinations such as Kumasi in central Ghana, Tamale in the north and Takoradi in the west.
SAA customers will also be able to connect from Accra to Lagos and Abuja in Nigeria, Freetown in Sierra Leone and Monrovia in Liberia.
In turn, customers of Africa World Airlines travelling from Ghana, Lagos, Abuja, Freetown and Monrovia are able to travel on one ticket from any AWA point of origin and connect onto SAA international flights to either Washington D.C. or Johannesburg, or further on the SAA network.
The CEOs of SAA and AWA, Mr Vuyani Jarana and Mr John Quan, signed the partnership at the Ghana Ministry of Aviation in Accra.
The Ghana Minister of Aviation, Hon. Joseph Kofi Adda, who officiated at the event said, “As part of our turnaround strategy, we are constantly looking at ways of improving our customers’ travel experiences. This agreement gives our customers seamless connections from Johannesburg into more destinations in Ghana and other West African destinations.”
The partnership between SAA and AWA has further opened a poser about why no Nigerian airline has any existing or pending pact with any of the over 30 foreign airlines operating in the country.
Daily Trust reports that the defunct Virgin Nigeria and Air Nigeria once had partnership with US carrier, Delta, when they were selling their tickets.
But at the moment, none of the eight Nigerian airlines has any partnership with foreign airlines even as some of the foreign airlines operating in Nigeria have existing partnership arrangement with other African carriers.
For instance, Delta Airline has partnership with SAA and Kenya Airways for connecting flights to the United States.
According to aviation analyst, retired Group Capt. John Ojikutu, “AWA and SA are both national carriers; you must have that in focus whenever you want to make case on behalf of the Nigerian carriers.”
He said, “most foreign airlines patronising our international routes are national carriers not private as all Nigerian airlines. Most of these foreign airlines are not only subscribing to IATA but are members of international air transport alliances.
“Nigeria airlines must credibly be members of these groups before anyone of them can be considered for pacts with foreign airlines. As at today, outside the West African regional routes, am not aware we have Nigeria airlines on the continental and intercontinental routes.
“Without a national or flag carrier, we are still a long way to commercial partnership pacts with any foreign airlines”.