KING Shaka International Airport welcomed the inaugural flight of Air Seychelles on Thursday. Air Seychelles will be flying a twice-weekly non-stop service on Thursdays and Saturdays, connecting Durban and the Seychelles’ capital Mahé, using an Airbus A320 Aircraft with a 16-seat business class and 120-seat economy configuration, which will achieve an average flight time of five hours, 20 minutes.
Sihle Zikalala, KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs said KwaZulu-Natal, with its thriving tourism sector, placed great importance in opening its borders to foreign visitors.
Zikalala added that the new route into the Seychelles would boost the supply various consumer goods, machinery parts and implements, which the island currently imports.
Durban’s King Shaka International Airport has seen an increase in the number of regional and international airlines, which have introduced new air services into the airport; since late 2015 Durban has attracted six new airlines, which together provide onward connections to over 700 destinations around the globe.
‘Air Seychelles will provide onward connectivity to key destinations across Europe, the Far East, India and the Middle East, through the hub in Abu Dhabi. Air Seychelles’ connection to Mumbai will provide a convenient travel option for KwaZulu-Natal and other neighbouring provinces.”
The new route will strengthen socio-economic cooperation between Durban and Seychelles and will contribute towards inter-regional development by becoming another commercial launch pad for KwaZulu-Natal into the rest of the world.
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