, powered by Wesgro has celebrated a record-breaking travel season in the year 2023.){kind=link}
South Africa: Cape Town Air Access (CTAA), powered by Wesgro has celebrated a record-breaking season in 2023. Cape Town International Airport (CTIA) welcomed more than 2.8 million international passengers, which is the highest number ever recorded.
The air-route development project conducted its 7th Annual Review. It was attended by airlines, government partners and business stakeholders where the CTAA reflected on the milestones achieved by this pioneering partnership. This aims to bring together the public and private sectors.
CEO of Wesgro and official spokesperson of CTAA – Wrenelle Stander, said they were committed to doing even more as air connectivity was a catalyst for economic growth driver of the competitiveness of the region. They thanked partners for their continued contribution to the successful collaboration.
Stander said further, “With CTAA, action speaks louder than words. The number of routes established into Cape Town in the past three years have now surpassed the number that was achieved in the first five years of the project. Since the year 2021, 16 airlines have initiated and announced the 18 new routes to our destination.”
CTAA said that the upcoming summer season would see one new destination added to CTIA’s network, with passengers that are now able to fly directly to Kasane on Air Botswana.
As per the sources, the Mother City will also welcome its newest airline ‘Norse Atlantic Airways’ which will operate a seasonal service from London’s Gatwick airport, whilst three additional African route services, which will also be launched into Cape Town, covering the existing destinations.
Provincial Minister of Agriculture, Economic, Development and Tourism – Dr. Ivan Meyer said that the expansion of existing routes was a cause for celebration because it meant the business case for flying to Cape Town remained strong.
“This upcoming season will see 11 route expansions, contributing to 226 weekly international flights and being operated to CTIA at the peak of the summer season. It’s the highest total ever! CTAA demonstrated the success that is possible when government and the private sector worked together to achieve the shared objectives. This is precisely what the Growth for Jobs Strategy has been set out to achieve the goal,” said Dr. Meyer.
Notably, the Annual Review also showcased the achievements of CTAA in 2023, which included winning the prestigious Routes World Destination Marketing Award for the second consecutive year.
In terms of two-way passengers to CTIA, the top-10 destinations involved were the United Kingdom, the USA, the Netherlands, Germany, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, the UAE, France, Mauritius and India.
India recorded a notable 115% recovery rate between 2019 and 2023, showcasing the enormous potential of this under-served market.
CEO Stander stated, “That is why our focus is firmly on growing air connectivity to new destinations and expanding existing routes, especially in Asia and Africa. Because we know that when we grow passenger in numbers, then we also grow the economy and we create the jobs.”