South Africa's largest domestic and international airline, South African Airways, was established in 1934. SAA was created as one of the first national airlines on Earth. SAA has its main, modern hubs in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Transnet, a public transport company, is the owner of SAA. More than 2% of SAA's stocks are held by its nearly 9,000 employees.



It serves 31 cities in 25 countries, carrying more than 7 million passengers per year. Recently a member of the exclusive Star Alliance, the connection vastly extended the number of destinations SAA flies to. Skytrax, the British experts on aviation ratings, declares SAA one of the best international airlines in terms of products offered and service standards. Employees receive intensive advanced training programs to help SAA maintain its reputation for excellent customer service.

One of the top airlines in the business is the SAA. The SAA, or Suid-Afriaanse Lugdiens in Afrikaans, is always ranked as the top performer, safest and money making airline. There are also many other catagories in which they rank high.

The first cities served in 1934 were Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg. Flights to Kenya, Uganda and British East Africa signaled SAA's entrance into the international market. The airline was essentially shut down during WWII, but in 1945, SAA achieved a long-time goal by opening its route to Europe with its first flight to Bournemouth.

In the 1950s jet age, SAA introduced the Boeing 707 to its fleet. SAA was the first airline after the UK to operate a pure jetliner flight. Two years later, SAA jets would fly non-stop to the UK and its other European destinations. SAA began flights to New York in 1969. The SAA fleet now includes a total of 50 aircraft.

SAA's loyalty program, Voyager, has nearly 2 million members. Members can earn airmiles on SAA as well as for flights with their partner airlines and Star Alliance members. SAA backs up its commitment to customer service by investing millions each year on in-flight entertainment. Passengers may choose from more than a dozen movie channels, video games, music and travel information.

Business and first-class passengers are pampered even more. Business class offers the best business flat bed seats in the industry, according to Skytrax. They can also enjoy the Boabab Lounge at Johannesburg, which offers workstations complete with computers, faxes and printers. SAAs Cyclad Premium Lounge in Johannesburg was voted the third best in the world in a Skytrax survey in 2002.

The following features are offered in the first-class cabins by SAA: The first one is the 180-degree bed on which we can lie flat and it comes as one of the widest in the industry with 29 inches wide. The second one is the large, private television screens with the audio-video on-demand. Also each seat has its own electronically controlled ottoman.

Business class travelers enjoy most comforts during their travel. Starting from the fully adjustable seats with an adjustable headrest and pneumatic lumbar support to the large private television screens with the audio-video-on-demand.

In economy class, passengers may choose from two main courses accompanied by fine South African Wines while they also enjoy private televisions with audio-video-on-demand.

The main priority for SAA is the safety of the passengers and it is clearly visible through its largest maintenance facility in Africa. Apart from handling its maintenance, SAA also offers maintenance services to British airways and air france.