South African Airways has expanded its fleet with the addition of a pair of Airbus A320s, taking its operation to 20 aircraft.
The airline has been gradually rebuilding its services and network since emerging from business rescue and despite the failure of a privatisation effort.
SAA says the extra pair of A320s – introduced over the past two weeks – are being leased from Irish-based AerCap.
It expects to bring in a total of five aircraft over the course of this year.
The carrier had just six aircraft when the business rescue process ended in September 2021.
It has been re-establishing regional and intercontinental connections, expanding its fleet to include Airbus A330 and A340 jets for long-haul operations.
SAA serves destinations including Sao Paolo from Johannesburg and Cape Town, as well as Perth from Johannesburg.
“These additional aircraft will enable SAA to continue fulfilling our promise to add seat capacity in both the domestic and regional market, and thereby contributing to the affordability of passenger air travel,” says interim chief John Lamola.
The carrier is opening a new connection to Dar es Salaam and expanding frequency on routes including Harare, Lusaka, Lagos and Accra.
SAA points out that the agreement with AerCap illustrates the “recovery” of the airline’s credit status with aviation finance institutions.
