Cape Town’s economy has been given a big boost with the news of the US’s Delta Air Lines finally getting the go-ahead from the South African government to fly a triangular route between Atlanta, Johannesburg and Cape Town.

This approval is a long time coming. I have written several bespoke submissions on behalf of the City to Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula and Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu on this matter over the past few months.

As the world continues its efforts to recover from the pandemic, more and more international airlines have announced flights to and from Cape Town International Airport. Most recently, Air Belgium said it will start a seasonal route from September 2022, while Air Botswana, Emirates and KLM will all increase the frequency of their flights in the coming months.

The Delta route comes on top of the United Airlines announcement that it will be resuming direct flights between Cape Town and Newark/New York in June 2022, ahead of their initial schedule.

Over the past decade, the US has been the largest source of Foreign Direct Investment by value into the Western Cape - R19,68 billion and last year, the US was the number one country to export from the province.

I look forward to welcoming more US travellers to our shores in the coming months!

Source: South African Police Service