Regional airline, Airlink, and Emirates have agreed to expand their existing partnership into a unilateral codeshare agreement across Airlink’s network of more than 40 domestic and regional destinations across 12 African countries.

This codeshare will augment the long-standing partnership that Emirates has with SAA, according to a press release. It will especially benefit inbound tourists by giving them a number of simpler, seamless options for travel in the region.

The move comes as Emirates resumes its flights to South Africa and ramps up its operations via its gateways Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. The connectivity provided by the new codeshare between Emirates and Airlink will offer competitive fares, combined ticketing, and seamless baggage transfers when connecting between the two airlines.

Emirates customers travelling to South Africa can now transfer from Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban to domestic points such as Bloemfontein, George, Upington, Nelspruit, Hoedspruit, Kimberley, Skukuza, Pietermaritzburg, Richards Bay, Sishen, Mthatha and Port Elizabeth, as well as points across Southern Africa like Gaborone, Kasane, Vilanculos, Lubumbashi, Dar es Salaam, Entebbe, Maseru, Antananarivo, Pemba, Tete, Maun, Victoria Falls, Walvis Bay, Maputo, Windhoek, Harare, Lusaka, Ndola, Bulawayo and Livingstone, amongst many other cities.

“We are delighted, honoured, and privileged that Emirates Airline has chosen Airlink as its Southern Africa partner. Emirates serves all of our source markets and together we are able to provide vital air access throughout Airlink’s comprehensive network of destinations within Southern Africa, and provide much-needed connectivity,” said MD and CEO of Airlink, Rodger Foster. “The tourism and air transportation sectors have been hardest hit by the pandemic and the associated lockdowns and travel bans, and as the world gets vaccinated, we expect the pent-up travel demand will be realised, and more customers will want to visit the special destinations that Airlink offers.”

“We are committed to growing our operations in South Africa and, with the strong connection opportunities being provided collectively with Airlink, we hope to help jumpstart the recovery of the local travel and tourism industry,” said Emirates COO, Adnan Kazim. “Our codeshare partnership with Airlink complements the valuable relationship Emirates has with South African Airways, which we eagerly anticipate to restart once the airline is back in operation,” he added.