Qantas, the flag carrier of Australia, is set to rediuce its weekly flights from Sydney to Johannesburg. Currently operating six weekly Airbus A380 flights between Sydney's Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg, Qantas will scale back to four weekly flights starting in February 2026.
This change aligns with the airline’s plan to launch a new direct service from Perth to Johannesburg by the end of 2025. Once the Perth-Johannesburg route begins, Qantas will offer daily direct flights between Australia and South Africa, enhancing overall connectivity.
From February 2026, Qantas’ Sydney departures will take off at 17:30 on Mondays and Wednesdays, and 17:15 on Thursdays and Saturdays. These 14-hour, 50-minute direct flights, operated by the Airbus A380, will arrive in Johannesburg at either 14:30 or 14:15, respectively.
26 May 2025
Australia: Qantas to reduce weekly flights between Sydney <> Johannesburg!
07 May 2025
Australia: Qantas reintroduces direct flights between Perth and Johannesburg!
Australia’s national airline, Qantas, is set to resume its direct service between Perth Airport (PER) in Perth in Western Australia and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg from 07 December 2025. The new route will operate three times a week - on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays - using the Airbus A330, featuring 27 business class seats with lie-flat beds and direct aisle access, along with 224 economy seats.
The Perth <> Johannesburg route was previously suspended in October 2003 and briefly reinstated in November 2022. However, operations were halted again on 25 March 2023 due to terminal infrastructure constraints at Perth Airport (PER). In May 2024, Qantas and Perth Airport (PER) reached a new agreement to upgrade terminal facilities, paving the way for the route’s return in December 2025.
Travellers can also enjoy seamless connections to Cape Town and other destinations through Qantas’ partnership with Airlink.
28 April 2025
Southern Africa: Qantas and Airlink expand codeshare agreement!
Australia’s national carrier, Qantas, and South African regional airline, Airlink, have expanded their existing codeshare partnership, offering travellers even greater access across Southern Africa. Under the enhanced agreement, Qantas passengers can now book flights under the QF code on Airlink-operated services to three new African countries: Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
This expansion creates seamless connections for Qantas customers travelling between Sydney and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg, making it easier than ever to explore some of Africa’s most iconic destinations. New codeshare routes include:
- Gaborone in Botswana
- Livingstone and Lusaka in Zambia
- Victoria Falls and Harare in Zimbabwe
These additions join the airlines' network of codeshare destinations across South Africa and Namibia, offering passengers the convenience of single ticket itineraries, through check-in for baggage, and frequent flyer benefits for eligible travelers.
Qantas codeshare flights operated by Airlink (departing from Johannesburg):
- South Africa:
- Bloemfontein
- Cape Town
- Durban
- East London
- George
- Hoedspruit (Kruger National Park)
- Kruger Mpumalanga (Nelspruit)
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
- Skukuza (Kruger National Park)
- Botswana:
- Gaborone
- Maun
- Namibia:
- Windhoek
- Walvis Bay
- Zambia:
- Livingstone
- Lusaka
- Zimbabwe:
- Bulawayo
- Harare
- Victoria Falls
14 October 2024
South African Airways (SAA): More flights to key destinations!
South African flag carrier, South African Airways (SAA), has announced a significant increase in its flight frequencies to key African destinations, starting next month. Starting in November 2024, SAA will operate 12 weekly flights to both RG Mugabe International Airport (HRE) in Harare and Kenneth Kaunda International Airport (LUN) in Lusaka, up from the current 10 times a week to Harare and up from 7 to Lusaka. Flights to Lagos (Nigeria) and Accra (Ghana) will increase to four times a week, up from three weekly flights. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), SAA will enhance its presence by flying five times a week to N'djili Airport (FIH) in Kinshasa. Domestically, SAA will increase its flights to Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport (PLZ) in Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) to three times a day.
South African Airways (SAA) is also set to increase the frequency of its flights to Mauritius and Perth in Western Australia. The airline will begin flying twice daily to Mauritius from the beginning of December 2024 to coincide with peak holiday season. The first additional frequency to Perth will commence in December 2024 and the second will be added from January 2025, taking the number of return flights to Perth five times a week.
01 October 2024
Australia: Qantas starts Airbus A380 flights to South Africa!
The flag carrier of Australia, Qantas, has operated the first Airbus A380 flight between Australia and South Africa on 30 September 2024. The A380 will fly up to six times per week between Sydney Airport (SYC) in Sydney and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and will see a near-doubling of capacity, with an extra 130,000 seats between Australia and Africa every year.
The Qantas Airbus A380 has capacity for 485 passengers across four cabins, with the introduction of the Superjumbo seeing a return of First Class on the route for the first time since 2018. Qantas First features 14 individual suites arranged in an exclusive 1-1-1 configuration and convert into a 212-centimetre bed. The upgauge will also more than double the number of Premium Economy seats available between the cities.
Qantas also intends to relaunch direct flights from Perth to Johannesburg from mid-2025, subject to meeting border agency requirements.
Qantas & Airlink sign codeshare agreement!
The flag carrier of Australia, Qantas, and South African regional airline, Airlink, have signed a codeshare agreement. Qantas will add its airline code ("QF") on Airlink’s domestic network, enabling seamless connectivity between Qantas' flights to OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and nine South African destinations, including Cape Town, Durban and Hoedspruit. The airline is planning to add additional Airlink destinations in nearby southern African countries over the coming months, pending regulatory approval. We'll keep you posted!
24 September 2024
South African Airways increases flights between Johannesburg <> Perth!
South African flag carrier, South African Airways (SAA), is set to up the frequency of its nonstop service to Perth in Western Australia. The airline will increase the number of weekly flights between OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and Perth Airport (PER) in Perth to four (JNB: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays; PER: Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Sundays) between 08 December 2024 and 06 January 2025. From 07 January 2025, SAA will operate five weekly return flights to Perth. The additional flight will depart Johannesburg on Mondays, while the return flight will depart Perth on Tuesdays.
South African Airways (SAA) resumes its nonstop Australian service in April 2024. Perth is only the second international destination the carrier recommenced flights to after the Covid-19 pandemic.
03 June 2024
Australia: Qantas is planning to resume flights between Perth <> Johannesburg!
Qantas, the flag carrier airline of Australia, is planing to resume scheduled flights between Perth and Johannesburg. The airline and Perth Airport (PER), the international airport serving Perth in Western Australia, have recently signed a commercial agreement which will stimulate a multi-billion-dollar wave of investment and deliver new international and domestic flights. As part of the agreement, Perth Airport (PER) will invest in upgrades to Terminals 3 and 4, which will enable Qantas to add services and more destinations from Perth, including Auckland Airport (AKL) in Auckland, New Zealand, and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg, South Africa, from mid-2025, subject to meeting border agency requirements. We'll keep you posted!
14 March 2024
South Africa: South African Airlines (SAA) adjusts its Johannesburg <> Perth schedule!
The flag carrier airline of South Africa, South African Airways
(SAA), has announced that it has undertaken a schedule review of its
upcoming service to Perth in Western Australia to identify areas for
enhancement. SAA customers travelling from Perth can expect more
convenient departure and arrival times, allowing for easier domestic and
regional connections and reduced travel times. This change also assists
connecting customers from New Zealand and other cities in Australia.
"We are thrilled to introduce this enhancement to our flight schedule, which directly addresses feedback and preferences from our customers," says SAA’s Chief Commercial Officer, Mr Tebogo Tsimane.
From its inaugural
flight on 28 April 2024, SAA's flights from OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg to Perth Airport (PER) in Perth will depart at 20:55 and arrive at 12:20 the following day.
The schedule for outward bound flights remains unchanged.
On 29 April 2024,
the inaugural flight from Perth to Johannesburg will now depart Perth at
23:50 and arrive in Johannesburg at 04:45 on 30 April 2024. All times
are local for both Johannesburg and Perth. Customers already booked on
the earlier departure time from Perth will be accommodated on the
flight on the same day.
08 January 2024
South Africa: South African Airways returns to Australia!
South Africa's flag carrier, South African Airways (SAA), has announced its return to Australia. The airline will resume flights between OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and Perth Airport (PER) in Perth in Western Australia on 28 April 2024. According to the CEO of SAA, Professor John Lamola, "SAA’s operations to Perth are in line with the airline’s strategic plans to scale its operations to a profitable level by leveraging SAA’s unique capabilities as a national carrier with wide-body aircraft that can provide South Africa with long-haul intercontinental air connectivity." The Perth route marks the second interoceanic route to be reopened within six months of the successful launch of the Sao Paulo, Brazil route on 31 October 2023.
South African Airways (SAA) will operate three weekly return flights to Perth. Flights will depart Johannesburg on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays at 20:55 and arrive in Perth the following day at 12:20, while flights from Perth will depart on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 14:40 and arrive in Johannesburg the following day at 19:35.
For the launch phase of the route, SAA will operate an Airbus A340 – 300, with a total seat capacity of 253 (38 business class seats and 215 economy seats). Bookings open today, 08 January 2024.
04 October 2022
Zambia waives tourist visa requirements for several countries! [update]
update (09 January 2023): According to a statutory instrument issued by the Zambian Government on 02 November 2022, the following 43 countries are on the list of visa-exempt countries. Visa-exempt nationals are allowed to remain in Zambia up to 30 days with an option to extend up to 90 days. The following countries are exempt from visa requirements:
Australia, Canada, Norway, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, US, UK, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and China
The Zambia Tourism Agency announced on 30 September 2022 that Zambia has waived tourist visa requirements for citizens from several countries in a bid to boost tourism. Effective since 01 October 2022, citizens of the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, Norway, Australia, China, South Korea, Gulf States and the European Union no longer need a tourist visa to visit Zambia.
25 June 2022
Australia: Qantas to launch the only direct service from Perth to South Africa! [update]
update (25 October 2022): According to news reports from Australia, Qantas' service between Perth in Western Australia and Johannesburg will take off as planned on 01 November 2022, but will only run until 25 March 2023, when the route will be “suspended until further notice.” We'll keep you posted!
The flag carrier of Australia, Qantas, is set to launch the only direct service from Perth in Western Australia to South Africa. Effective 01 November 2022, the airline will operate three weekly flights between Perth Airport (PER) in Perth and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg. The flights will cut more than six hours from the fastest current travel time, with customers heading to Johannesburg from Perth currently having to fly on Qantas via Sydney, or via the Middle East. The airline will operate the new route on board its Airbus A330 aircraft.
Qantas existing four flights per week from Sydney Airport (SYD) in Sydney to Johannesburg on its Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft will increase to daily from 30 October 2022.
22 October 2021
Qantas to resume flights between Sydney <> Johannesburg in January 2022! [update]
update (04 January 2021): Qantas Airways flight QF63 is scheduled to land at Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) this afternoon.
The flag carrier of Australia, Qantas, has announced that it will bring forward the restart of more international flights to popular destinations from Sydney. This includes fligths to OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg, South Africa. Qantas flights between Sydney Airport (SYD) in Sydney and Johannesburg will resume on 04 05 January 2022, three months earlier than scheduled. Three return flights a week will be operated by a Boeing 787 aircraft.
The faster ramp up follows the Australian and New South Wales governments confirming that the country's international borders would reopen from 01 November 2021 and the decision by the New South Wales Government to remove quarantine requirements for fully vaccinated arrivals – which significantly increases travel demand.
31 August 2021
Qantas will resume flights between Australia <> South Africa in 2022!
The flag carrier of Australia, Qantas, has provided more detail on preparations for restarting its international flights, with plans linked to the vaccine rollout in Australia and key overseas markets. Australia is expected reach the critical threshold of 80% of the adult population fully vaccinated in December 2021 ("National Cabinet's Phase C"), triggering the gradual reopening of international borders. Qantas' key markets like the UK, North America and parts of Asia have also high and increasing levels of vaccination. This makes them highly likely to be classed as low risk countries for vaccinated travellers to visit and return from under reduced quarantine requirements, pending decisions by the Australian Government and entry policies of other countries. Flights to destinations that still have low vaccine rates and high levels of Covid-19 infection will now be pushed out from December 2021 until April 2022. This includes, among others, flights to OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg, South Africa. We'll keep you posted!
25 February 2021
Qantas is planning to return to Johannesburg from late October 2021! [update]
update (14 May 2021): Qantas has announced a further suspension of scheduled international flights (with the exception of flights between Australia and New Zealand) until 20 December 2021 due to the ongoing Coronavirus situation.
The flag carrier of Australia, Qantas, has announced that it is planning to restart regular international passenger flights to most of its 25 pre-Covid-19 international destinations from 31 October 2021, instead of July 2021, as it previously forecast. According to the airline, the date change aligns with the expected timeframe for Australia's Covid-19 vaccine rollout to be effectively complete.
Johannesburg in South Africa, along with e.g. London in England and Los Angeles in the USA, will be one of the 22 international destinations Qantas is resuming flights to. Three routes – New York, Santiago and Osaka – will return at a later date.
Qantas says the flight capacity will be lower than pre-Covid-19 levels, with frequencies and aircraft type deployed on each route in line with the projected recovery of international flying. International capacity is not expected to fully recover until 2024.
07 November 2017
Johannesburg: Constitution Hill hosts an exhibition on how Australia helped end Apartheid!
The Constitution Hill precinct is located at 11 Kotze Street in Braamfontein, Johannesburg near the western end of the suburb of Hillbrow. The opening hours are daily from 09:00 to 17:00, with the final tour departing from the Visitor Centre at 16:00. Tickets for adults cost between R65 (1hrs highlights tour) and R350 (3hrs time travel tour). If you are visiting Constitution Hill as part of your City Sightseeing red bus tour, your red bus ticket entitles you to a 25% discount off your Constitution Hill ticket price on the day of your red bus trip.
01 September 2016
Mozambique: Australian Consulate operates from a new address in Maputo!
Australian Consulate in Maputo
Mr Blake Grey
Honorary Consul
Australian Consulate
Ave (Rua?) Kamba Simango, 71
Maputo
Mobile +258-21 302155
Email: australian.consulate.moz@gmail.com
The Australian Consulate in Mozambique is headed by Honorary Consul Mr Blake Grey and only provides limited consular and passport assistance.For full consular and passport assistance contact the Australian High Commission, in Pretoria, South Africa:
Australian High Commission in Pretoria:
292 Orient Street
Arcadia
Pretoria, South Africa
Telephone (27 12) 423 6000
Facsimile (27 12) 342 8442
Email: pretoria.info@dfat.gov.au
http://www.southafrica.embassy.gov.au