Johannesburg - South African Airways and TAM Airlines, one of the largest carriers in South America, have implemented a code share agreement.SAA will place its designator code "SA" on flights operated by TAM from Sao Paulo to Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre, Curitiba, Brasília, Salvador, Florianopolis, Iguaçu Falls, Recife, Belo Horizonte.
Likewise, TAM will place its designator code "JJ" on flights operated by SAA between Sao Paulo and Johannesburg, and to other cities within South Africa, namely, Cape Town, Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth. SAA currently has eleven (11) flights per week between Johannesburg and Sao Paulo and has an extensive schedule from Johannesburg to these coastal South African cities.
"Alliances and partnerships of this nature forms a crucial part of modern airline management, which is about providing convenient connection for customers to as many destinations as possible without necessarily using your own resources. Moreover, this code share provides a platform to tap into the potential that lies in both carriers' respective markets in a manner that would significantly enhance benefits for passengers of both airlines," said Manoj Papa, SAA's acting General Manager: Commercial.
The collaboration by the two airlines will not only offer leisure travellers a bouquet of holiday options, but also access to multiple business centres.
"This code share operation is vital in that customers travelling to and from various parts of Africa, South America and countries in the east are able to use SAA's Johannesburg hub as a convenient connection point to various parts of the world," elaborated Papa.
"We are seeking partnerships like this to offer our customers flights to all over the world," explained Soledad Berrios, LATAM Airlines Group Senior Vice President Strategic Alliances. "Together with South African Airways we will make travelling between Brazil and South Africa easier, and the countries will be the gateway of the South American and African continents," said Berrios.
Customers who are members of SAA's loyalty programme, Voyager, will continue to earn miles and obtain tier status when travelling on TAM flights. Likewise, members of the TAM Fidelidade programme will also continue to earn and redeem points when they travel on SAA flights. This provides an opportunity for customers to spend miles exploring the various destinations offered by the two carriers.
