2023-09-02 17:05:38
© Reuters. Latam airline aircraft in Montevideo 2/25/2021 REUTERS/Mariana Greif
SAO PAULO (Reuters) – Latam Brazil inaugurates this Saturday a direct route from Sao Paulo to Johannesburg, South Africa, joining other international airlines that also offer direct flights to the African continent, such as Taag and Ethiopian, amid demands from President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for more flights to Africa.
The airline plans to carry approximately 75,000 passengers between the two countries annually, with flights taking place three times a week.
The inauguration takes place days after a trip by President Lula to the African continent, where he charged for more direct flights to Africa, despite erroneously stating that there were no direct connections from Brazil to the region.
“I want to discuss how a country the size of Brazil does not have direct flights to the African continent. When I return to Brazil, I will talk to the airlines, with the Ministry of Ports and Airports. We will seek solutions to this problem”, said Lula on Platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
African operators such as Taag Airlines and Ethiopian Airlines already offer direct routes to cities such as Luanda, in Angola, and Addis Ababa, in Ethiopia.
With the new route, however, the Brazilian subsidiary of Latam becomes the first national airline to fly directly from the country to the African continent, expanding options and destinations for non-connecting flights.
The Minister of Ports and Airports, Márcio França, will be present this Saturday, together with the CEO of Latam Brasil, Jerome Cadier, at the debut of the São Paulo-Johanesburg route, whose inaugural takeoff takes place at 5:25 pm (Brasília time), at the Airport Guarulhos International.
(Reporting by Gabriel Araujo and Patricia Vilas Boas)
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