Qatar Airways is significantly expanding its services to South Africa with increased frequencies to its three gateways – Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban – to meet growing demand for business and leisure travel.

The frequency boost increases the airline’s total weekly flights to South Africa from 35 to 42, providing greater flexibility for passengers connecting from South Africa to Qatar Airways’ extensive network of over 170 destinations worldwide:

• Weekly flights between Johannesburg and Doha will increase from 18 to 21, effective 18 February 2026
• Weekly flights between Cape Town and Doha will increase from 12 to 14, effective 17 February 2026
• Weekly flights between Durban (tagged with Maputo) and Doha will increase from five to seven, effective 05 March 2026.

These enhancements demonstrate Qatar Airways’ commitment to improving connectivity between South Africa and key markets including China, Europe, and USA, facilitating economic and tourism growth in southern Africa. Passengers will also benefit from optimal flight times that provide convenient connections through the airline’s Doha hub, the multi-award-winning Hamad International Airport.

This expansion follows a significant year for Qatar Airways operations in Africa, marked by collaborations with key carriers including Air Algérie, Kenya Airways, RwandAir, and a strategic partnership with Southern Africa’s premium carrier Airlink, in which it acquired a 25% share in October 2024.

The airline continues to support key African export sectors, including fresh produce, horticulture, and textiles by providing reliable belly-hold capacity on passenger aircraft and dedicated freighters. Qatar Airways Cargo, the world’s leading cargo carrier and freight division of Qatar Airways Group, transports more than 6,000 tonnes of cargo into and out of the African continent each week.

Qatar Airways, the record-breaking nine-time winner of the Skytrax ‘World’s Best Airline’ award, has also raised the bar for in-flight innovation and customer experience, announcing that passengers on select African routes can enjoy free gate-to-gate* Starlink Wi-Fi for streaming, gaming, and working at more than 35,000 feet.

The carrier further enhanced the onboard experience with nostalgic meal offerings inspired by beloved African cuisines such as jollof, bobotie, and bunny chow – alongside a curated music selection spanning modern hits, classics, and traditional sounds like mbira.

Qatar Airways’ commitment to Africa spans more than 30 years, with the inaugural flight in 1994 marking the beginning of a strategic commitment to connect the world with Africa. Today, the carrier operates over 170 weekly flights to 29 cities in 21 African countries, further complimented by 30 interline and seven codeshare agreements with airlines across Africa.

About Qatar Airways

A multiple award-winning airline, Qatar Airways won the ‘World’s Best Airline’ title for an unprecedented ninth time at the 2025 World Airline Awards, managed by the international air transport rating organisation, Skytrax. Qatar Airways was previously named the World’s Best Airline in 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2024.

The airline continues to be synonymous with excellence, and has yet again received recognition for ‘World’s Best Business Class’, and ‘World’s Best Business Class Airline Lounge’. As the leading connector in the region, Qatar Airways has also been lauded with the ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’ title for the 13 time.

Qatar Airways currently flies to over 170 destinations worldwide, connecting through its Doha hub, Hamad International Airport, the ‘Best Airport in the Middle East’ for 11 consecutive years, as well as ‘World’s Best Airport Shopping’ for the third year in a row, as voted by Skytrax. Hamad International Airport has previously been named the ‘World’s Best Airport’ by Skytrax in 2021, 2022, and 2024.

Qatar Airways was the first Airline in the Middle East to be certified to the highest level of IATA’s Environmental Assessment (IEnvA) programme, based on recognised environmental management system principles (such as ISO 14001). As an inaugural signatory to the Buckingham Palace Declaration in March 2016, Qatar Airways became the first airline globally to be certified to the industry standard for the prevention of illegal wildlife trafficking in aviation.

For further information, visit www.qatarairways.com or the Qatar Airways mobile app.