City and business slam SAA’s decision to cut Frankfurt flight
The City of Cape Town and Accelerate Cape Town have joined forces in condemning South African Airways’ decision to cut their direct flights between Cape Town and Frankfurt.
In a joint statement, they said that the plan was "at best ill conceived and will have a significant impact on business".
They also criticised the airline’s reluctance to provide a clear explanation of what lay behind the decision, despite numerous requests by the City.
"As the national flag carrier, supported by taxpayer’s money, SAA has a responsibility for economic development in Cape Town as much as anywhere else in the country," says Councillor Simon Grindrod, Mayoral Committee member for Economic, Social Development and Tourism.
"The termination of these direct flights will raise questions about Cape Town’s viability as a nexus for international business. If the flights were not full enough, SAA should rather have cut back on the number of flights instead of stopping them altogether.
"However, it is questionable whether these flights were going empty - considering the presence of around 50 000 German residents in the Western Cape and another 60 000 Germans who spend at least part of the year in the region. This is in addition to the presence of major German corporations and local companies that do business with Germany. Frankfurt is also a major hub for access to other European destinations," says Cllr Grindrod.
According to Guy Lundy, CEO of Accelerate Cape Town, whose membership includes 30 of the largest companies in the Cape, international businesses headquartered in Cape Town are constantly challenged by their executives about having to fly via Johannesburg to reach their destinations.
"It not only adds to their costs, but more importantly to the time spent outside the office, especially if they intend using Frankfurt as a hub for onward destinations as well. In fact, the lack of direct air access is one of the factors influencing the decision by companies such as BP to move their headquarters to Johannesburg," says Lundy.
"The more we allow ourselves to become isolated by the unilateral decisions of the national airline, the harder it will be for the Western Cape to achieve its aim of becoming a significant global business destination," says Cllr Grindrod. City officials have to date found it impossible to get a clear explanation from SAA as to what motivated their decision. "It is extremely arrogant for a publicly funded airline to simply drop this flight, thus threatening thousands of local jobs, without any consultation or further explanation," says Cllr Grindrod.
Lundy suggested that it was time to 'push harder for open skies' and greater competition on international routes to Cape Town, which are essential to the region’s growth as a global business destination.
"With Delta starting to fly directly from New York, and Emirates introducing daily flights from Dubai, there is clearly an appetite amongst international competitors to fill the void being left by SAA’s departure," he said.
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