South African Airways
South Africa · SPRINGBOK · Active
Airline Identity
History
South African Airways traces its origins to Union Airways, founded in 1929 and nationalized/renamed South African Airways in 1934, growing over the following decades into the flag carrier of South Africa with a hub-and-spoke network centered on Johannesburg. It joined Star Alliance in April 2006 as the first African carrier to join one of the three major global alliances, but accumulated years of financial losses that culminated in the airline entering voluntary business rescue in December 2019 and suspending all flights in 2020 amid the process and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Current Operations
SAA relaunched a much-reduced network after exiting business rescue and has since been rebuilding, operating around 19-21 Airbus aircraft (A320s, A330s and A340s) to roughly 17 destinations across Africa plus long-haul links to Australia (Perth) and Brazil (São Paulo) as of early 2026. It remains 100% owned by the South African government after a planned strategic equity partnership with the Takatso Consortium was terminated, and it has reported returning to profitability, with a stated 2025 financial-year profit of around R155 million on revenue of about R8.8 billion; the airline remains a Star Alliance member and saw a CEO transition in April 2026.
Last verified 2026-09-02· Source: airline public disclosures, company press releases & aviation-industry reporting.