Lufthansa expands South Africa-Europe repatriation flight programme

By working closely with both the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Embassy of Switzerland in South Africa, as well as local government, the Lufthansa Group will continue to operate repatriation flights to enable South African nationals to return home while transporting German and Swiss nationals, European Union members and Schengen State residents to their respective homes. Also, the Lufthansa repatriation flights will permit employees of the German and EU business community, including technical experts, to travel to South Africa for special work purposes.

“Currently, repatriation flights are the most essential service that an airline can provide in a country where travel bans remain in place. As South Africa is a key trading partner to Germany, Switzerland and Austria, it is important that the Lufthansa Group remains actively present in the market and maintains strong relations between South Africa and Europe. We are glad to continue servicing the local market in this way until travel bans are lifted and all Lufthansa Group carriers are given permission to resume its scheduled services to Johannesburg and Cape Town,” says Dr. André Schulz, general manager sales, Lufthansa Group, Southern Africa & East Africa.

Flight schedule

The next SWISS repatriation flight from Johannesburg to Zurich will take place on 22 August while Lufthansa will operate a repatriation flight on 26 August from Frankfurt to Johannesburg returning on 28 August from Johannesburg to Frankfurt.

Both airlines have also released their September repatriation schedules. Additional SWISS repatriation flights will take place on 5 September and 19 September.

Lufthansa will operate a total of eight repatriation flights over September. The Frankfurt to Johannesburg route will depart on 9 September and 23 September and return from Johannesburg to Frankfurt on 11 and 25 September. In addition, Lufthansa has also scheduled repatriation flights between Frankfurt and Cape Town. Flight LH576 will depart Frankfurt for Cape Town on 6 September and 20 September, returning Cape Town to Frankfurt on flight LH577 on 8 September and 22 September.

Lufthansa repatriation flights can be booked dedicated microsite, whereas SWISS flights can be booked on the regular website.

Safety

For the Lufthansa Group, safety and travel has always gone hand-in-hand, with the utmost importance placed on the safety and security of passengers and crew. Lufthansa continues to follow its stringent hygiene guidelines and practices in order to ensure that the onboard experience protects the health of passengers. All airlines of the Lufthansa Group require that passengers wear a facial mouth/nose covering for use while on board their flights and it is recommended that passengers wear this protective covering throughout their entire journey at the airports. For passengers travelling via Frankfurt, Lufthansa in cooperation with different medical partners offers its passengers Covid-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests with results delivered within a few hours in a dedicated walk in testing centre at the airports in Frankfurt, Munich and Hamburg.

“The Lufthansa Group remains committed to the South African market and connects our countries also during this unprecedented crisis. For all repatriation flights, the safety and health of our passengers and employees are a top priority for us. Therefore, all procedures throughout the entire travel chain will be constantly reviewed in order to guarantee the safety of everyone.” says Schulz.