- LIFT, the South African airline that isn’t even a year old, has launched its premium offering.
- This version of business class allows passengers to travel with more luggage and enjoy a blocked off middle seat.
- But competition in the domestic market is fierce, as airline’s attempt to shake off the pandemic blues and strengthen their positions ahead of the national carrier’s return.
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South Africa’s newest airline, LIFT, is the latest to introduce a premium section – its versions of a business class – on board its flights between Johannesburg and Cape Town.
LIFT, which made its inaugural flight less than ten months ago, has been weathering the pandemic-induced turbulence. The airline grounded its planes throughout July due to lockdown restrictions limiting travel in and out of Gauteng.
Prior to July’s suspension, LIFT had already transported more than 150,000 passengers with a 97% on-time performance rate and became the first domestic airline to introduce pet-friendly flights.
Now, a month after resuming its schedule between Johannesburg’s OR Tambo and Cape Town International, the airline has launched its premium service to compete with business class perks offered by its competitors.
The launch follows in the wake of FlySafair’s upgraded business class offering – which now automatically comes with an empty middle seat – and ahead of South African Airways’ (SAA) long-awaited return.
Discounted flights offered by Kulula, which only resumed operations on Wednesday following a three-month grounding, and FlySafair have further exemplified the state of competition within South Africa’s airline sector.
Here’s how the perks and fares of domestic airlines’ premium or business class offerings compare.