Air Mauritius Re-Introduces Durban Festive Flights

After declaring the closure of the Durban route, as of 28 October, Air Mauritius has announced that the national carrier will re-introduce flights to the KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa market, for the festive season, spanning 21 December 2012 – 13 January 2013.
 A319 aircraft will be used to service this market. So, from 28 October, Air Mauritius will operate 10 weekly flights out of Johannesburg, and additional supplementary capacity during peak holiday season. Also from 28 October, Cape Town flight capacity will also be simultaneous boosted with three flights direct to Mauritius, return, per week.
Furthermore, and also effective as of 28 October, Air Mauritius will offer network connectivity within six hours to all destinations, beyond Mauritius. These include competitive rates offered via international routes inclusive of: Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, London, Paris, India, China, Reunion, Kenya, Madagascar and more.

1time Cuts Mombasa Route

 Troubled South African low-cost airline, 1time, has announced that it will halt operations between Johannesburg and Mombasa from 17 September.
 "While the debt relief process will allow 1time to continue operating while we resolve the outstanding issues and prepare to emerge as a healthier company, part of the process will be to strengthen our profitable routes and to terminate non-profitmaking destinations," said CEO, Blacky Komani.
Earlier in the week, 1Time Holdings filed for business rescue. The airline's board said it required business rescue because it was "financially distressed". The firm has about R320-million in short-term debt and has been in negotiations with creditors since March.
1Time's shares have fallen 91% over the past two years, from about 155c a share to close at 14c a share on Tuesday. In April, the company reported a R157-million loss.
 Earlier this year, another South African low-cost airline, Velvet Sky, went into liquidation after failing to convince a court that it was a candidate for business rescue.

Travelport Trials New Service

Travelport is trialling a new service which will allow travel agents to book private car transfers via the GDS. Targeting selected Galileo-connected travel agents in Asia, the new Travelport ‘Drive Me’ solution works with two car rental companies to provide access to 21 airports in China, India, the Philippines and Singapore.
 Pending the completion of a successful trial, Travelport plans to make this service available to all Galileo-connected travel agents worldwide. By booking with Travelport via the GDS, agents are able to automate the process and bookings are integrated back into the passenger name record (PNR).
The tool uses the functionality of the Galileo CarMaster system and transmits flight and destination details to the transfer provider. All bookings through Travelport Drive Me will be commissionable at between five and 10%.

Hertz to buy Dollar Thrifty

Hertz has entered into an agreement to acquire car hire rival, Dollar Thrifty, more than two years after first making a bid for the company.
 The final offer is apparently worth $87.50 per share, which totals approximately $2.56 billion – more than double Hertz’s original 2010 bid. Since then, Hertz has been embroiled in a bidding war with the Avis Budget Group, with the latter company finally pulling out earlier this year.
The Hertz deal, which has been unanimously approved by directors of both companies, will be an all cash transaction. The combined company will offer approximately 10,000 locations across the world.

Qantas Celebrates 60 Years of Flying Between Johannesburg & Australia

Qantas is set to celebrate a major milestone in its history, as the airline marks its 60th anniversary of passenger flights between Australia and South Africa on 1 September.
 Qantas first commenced passenger services to Johannesburg on 1 September 1952, when a Lockheed Constellation L-749A aircraft departed Sydney and arrived three days later on 4 September 1952. Following the first flight, there were fortnightly services on the route until 1957, when Qantas and SAA announced a partnership to operate flights between the two countries on alternate weeks. This agreement involved SAA operating DC7B aircraft between Johannesburg and Perth, and Qantas operating Super Constellations from Perth to Sydney and return.
Today, Qantas operates a daily non-stop flight service between Sydney and Johannesburg on a B747-400 aircraft, with a typical flight time of 14 hours and 10 minutes. The return leg is generally assisted by a favourable tailwind, with a typical flying time of only 11 hours and 45 minutes.

AVIAREPS To Represent Condor

German leisure carrier Condor and general sales agent, AVIAREPS, have announced their co-operation in the South African market. For the launch of new flights between Frankfurt and Cape Town in November, the Johannesburg team of AVIAREPS has been appointed for the positioning of Condor in the market and being a local point of contact for all sales and reservations queries in South Africa.
 Starting on 3 November, Condor offers non-stop flights from Frankfurt to Cape Town. Aircraft depart on Tuesdays and Saturdays from Germany, whilst return flights from Cape Town are offered on Wednesdays and Sundays. Passengers will benefit from convenient overnight connections. Frankfurt – Cape Town is scheduled from 22h05 – 10h50 +1 on Tuesdays and 20h40 – 09h25 + 1 on Saturdays.
Cape Town – Frankfurt is served at 23h20 – 10h20 on Wednesdays and 18h55 – 05h55 on Sundays. Condor offers different classes on its long-haul routes: Economy Class, Premium Economy and Comfort Class. All services are operated with a modern Boeing 767-300 and are already available for sale.

Deadline Looms for Imvelo Responsible Tourism Awards

Tourism and hospitality businesses in Africa have until Friday 31 August to enter the 2012 Imvelo Responsible Tourism Awards programme. Imvelo awards businesses that implement sustained responsible tourism programmes.
Organised by the Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa (FEDHASA) in conjunction with Absa, the National Department of Tourism, Eskom, the Industrial Development Corporation and the Department of Water Affairs, Imvelo is open to any type of tourism and hospitality business.
FEDHASA Chairman, Eddy Khosa says Imvelo is now the leading responsible tourism project in South Africa and has made a huge impact on the industry.
Imvelo means ‘nature’ in South Africa’s Nguni languages. According to Khosa, the awards are in line with the National Minimum Standard for Responsible Tourism and the UN World Tourism Organisation’s code of ethics, and are supported by the Heritage Environmental Rating Programme.
 He says Imvelo has created significant awareness of environmental management issues in the tourism industry. “Over the years, the awards have found and recognised world-class examples of responsible tourism practice.”
Awards will be made in the following categories: Best Social Involvement Programme; Best Practice – Economic Impact; Best Overall Environmental Management System and Best Single Resource Management Programme – for Water, Energy and Waste, Most Empowered Tourism Business and Investing in People. An overall Imvelo winner will be selected.
 A Chairman’s Award could be made at the discretion of the FEDHASA chairman, to any Imvelo entrant or any other organisation in the tourism industry that made a significant contribution to responsible tourism over the past year. Entrants may enter in more than one category, but entries must stipulate the category/categories that apply.
Entries will be judged by a panel of specialists in responsible tourism practice and finalists will be visited personally to verify and evaluate their entries.
Winners will receive their awards at an awards ceremony to be held in Johannesburg on 31 October.
For more information, contact Cheryl Stevens on 0861 333 628 or visit www.imveloawards.co.za.