South African Airlines returns to Perth April 2024

South African Airways (SAA) has officially announced the revival of its direct flight service between Johannesburg and Perth, commencing 28 April 2024. This marks a celebrated return to form for the airline, offering a vital link between the continents after a three-year suspension due to global travel disruptions.

The restored service will operate on the Airbus A340-300, providing three flights per week. This schedule will reintroduce 78,936 seats into the Perth travel market annually.

The announcement is poised to resonate well with residents of Perth and Western Australia who have ties to South Africa or have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to fly direct. Furthermore, the route offers strategic travel options for passengers heading to South America, with connecting services to São Paulo available through SAA’s network.

Flights will be serviced by the A340-300, configured with 253 seats, which includes 38 Business Class and 215 Economy Class seats, promising comfort and style across the Indian Ocean.

Flight SA280 is slated to arrive in Perth at 12:20 pm, with the return flight SA281 scheduled to depart for Johannesburg at 14:40 pm on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

South African Award Space

On top of that, we’ve already noticed South African has started releasing award space on the flights. In Australia we have multiple options to book, those being Velocity Frequent Flyer, Singapore Airlines Kris Flyer and Air Canada Aeroplan.

The best value for money redemption here would be using your Velocity Points which would cost just 78,000 points in business class for a one-way flight. In fact, the exclusive promotion we have running for the Amex Velocity Platinum Card would get you enough points to fly business class to South Africa!

With Air Canada, you’re looking at 80,000 Aeroplan and KrisFlyer will set you back 101,500 points.