SunExpress, the joint venture of Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, and South African Airways (SAA) are expanding their cooperation in the upcoming winter season.

After a successful first year, SunExpress is strengthening its cooperation and doubling the number of aircraft leased to SAA. In this context, the airline will allocate 4 Boeing 737-800 aircraft with cockpit and technical crew to SAA for six months. The aircraft leased in the new period of cooperation will have a new cabin configuration with 16 premium and 159 economy seats. The first aircraft will start operations at the beginning of November.

This increased capacity will enable SunExpress to support South Africa's flag carrier with 134 weekly flights on three routes, while offering wider flight network connectivity and more travel options.

As the agreement enters its second year, the two airlines expanded their cooperation and worked together on a special training programme. Last September, a special training programme for SAA cabin crew was launched at SunExpress' headquarters in Antalya.

Max Kownatzki, CEO of SunExpress : ‘We are excited to expand our co-operation with South African Airways and build on the successes of our first year together. ’Doubling the number of aircraft we lease to SAA is an important step to manage the effects of seasonality as we grow our fleet. The specialised training we are providing to SAA is an indication of our shared vision for operational excellence and reflects our desire to seize more opportunities together.’

Prof. John Lamola, CEO of SAA, said: ‘SunExpress has demonstrated exceptional reliability since the beginning of our agreement last year. We are pleased to announce the expansion of our co-operation to include two additional aircraft during our peak season. The additional aircraft will support our growth in line with increasing customer demand and make it easier for us to manage the global aircraft availability challenge. We are also delighted that our cabin crew members will have the opportunity to participate in a special training programme that will further enhance the high level of service and safety we offer to our customers.’