SAA celebrates ten years service to Washington Dulles International Airport

SAA introduced a new service between Johannesburg, South Africa and Washington D.C. on 2 July 2005, with four flights per week and rapidly grew to offering a daily service on the route. 

In 2006, SAA introduced a service to Dakar, Senegal, continuing onward to Johannesburg, providing daily flights from the U.S. to Dakar and a convenient gateway to West Africa.  SAA is also the only Skytrax 4-Star rated airline flying between the U.S. and Africa, providing award-winning, world-class service. 

Over the past 10 years, SAA carried nearly 1.5 million passengers between Washington, D.C. and Africa, and has recently announced expansion of its West Africa network. On 3 August, SAA will launch a new nonstop service between Washington, D.C.-Dulles International Airport and Accra’s Kotoka International Airport, operating four days per week. 

“Our Washington route is one of the reasons why SAA is the predominant airline from the U.S. to Africa today,” said Nico Bezuidenhout, SAA acting CEO.

“Passengers travelling between Dulles International Airport and Africa deserve award-winning service and convenient schedules, and we are proud to have been serving them for ten years. We look forward to welcoming more and more customers on board and offering them our unique blend of African hospitality.”

Dulles International Airport also serves as a major gateway and connecting point in the U.S. for SAA passengers, with code share service offered to over 30 cities in the U.S. and Canada through its Star Alliance partner, United Airlines. 

“For ten years, the partnership between Washington Dulles International Airport and SAA has provided world-class travel opportunities and experiences between South Africa and the Washington, D.C., region,” said Mark Treadaway, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority vice president for Air Service Planning and Development. “Now, with the upcoming addition of nonstop service between Dulles International and Accra, Ghana, one of this region’s most important African travel destinations will further strengthen the ties between the United States and Africa for decades to come.”