Emirates and South African Airways (SAA) have expanded their long-standing partnership by introducing a reciprocal codeshare agreement, significantly enhancing connectivity across South Africa and neighbouring countries. The expanded agreement adds nine new destinations to the combined network, providing travellers with more seamless travel options across central and southern Africa.

The partnership marks the next phase of a relationship that has existed for nearly three decades. Since launching their codeshare agreement, SAA has placed its code on Emirates-operated flights between Dubai and Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban, while also offering interline connectivity to 68 Emirates destinations via Dubai. Following regulatory approvals, Emirates will now place its code on selected SAA-operated services, extending its reach deeper into the African continent.

The expanded agreement includes three domestic South African routes connecting Johannesburg with Cape Town, Durban, and Port Elizabeth, alongside six regional services linking Johannesburg with Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo), Gaborone (Botswana), Windhoek (Namibia), Lusaka (Zambia), Harare (Zimbabwe), and Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe).

The reciprocal arrangement enables passengers to book their journeys on a single ticket, benefit from coordinated schedules, and enjoy through-checked baggage to their final destination, making travel across the region more convenient.

Commenting on the expansion, Adnan Kazim, Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, Emirates, said the agreement represents the natural evolution of a partnership that has successfully served travellers for many years. He noted that the expanded codeshare strengthens Emirates’ long-term commitment to South Africa and provides customers with seamless access to more destinations across the region.

Matshela Seshibe, Acting Group CEO of South African Airways, said the partnership supports SAA’s strategy to strengthen African connectivity while improving access to global markets. He added that combining SAA’s regional network with Emirates’ extensive international reach creates greater value for customers while reinforcing Johannesburg’s position as a major aviation gateway in Africa.

Emirates has served South Africa since 1995, beginning operations with flights to Johannesburg before expanding to Cape Town and Durban. Today, the airline operates 56 weekly flights across the three South African gateways, making the country the only destination in Emirates’ African network served by all three of its widebody aircraft types, the Boeing 777, Airbus A380, and Airbus A350.

Passengers travelling on the new codeshare routes will also have access to Emirates’ Premium Economy product on services between Dubai and both Johannesburg and Cape Town.

The expanded partnership reflects both airlines' continued focus on strengthening regional connectivity, supporting tourism, trade, and business travel while providing passengers with greater choice across Africa.

Air India Express has announced a major expansion of its domestic network with the addition of Aurangabad, Coimbatore, Jamnagar, Jodhpur, Madurai, and Tirupati. With these new destinations, the airline's network will grow to 64 destinations, comprising 48 domestic and 16 international stations.

Flight operations to all six destinations will begin on 1 September 2026, connecting them with key metro hubs including Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. The expansion is aimed at improving connectivity between India's major cities and fast-growing business, industrial, cultural, and tourism destinations. Bookings are now open through the airline's website, mobile app, and other major booking platforms.

As part of the new schedule, Air India Express will operate two daily flights between Aurangabad and Delhi, Coimbatore and Mumbai, and Jamnagar and Mumbai. The airline will also introduce daily services connecting Jodhpur with Delhi and Mumbai, Madurai with Chennai, and Tirupati with Hyderabad.

Alongside the network expansion, the airline will increase frequencies on several existing domestic routes from 1 September 2026. Additional daily flights will be introduced between Delhi and Bhubaneswar, Kochi, Patna, and Varanasi. This will increase services to four daily flights on the Delhi–Bhubaneswar and Delhi–Patna routes, while Delhi–Kochi and Delhi–Varanasi will each operate twice daily.

The newly added destinations strengthen Air India Express' presence across western, southern, and northern India. Aurangabad, the gateway to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Ajanta and Ellora, and Jamnagar, a key industrial and energy hub, enhance the airline's footprint in western India. In the south, Coimbatore, a leading manufacturing and textile centre, joins the historic city of Madurai and the pilgrimage destination of Tirupati. Jodhpur, one of Rajasthan's most popular tourism and cultural centres, further strengthens the airline's northern India network.

The latest expansion follows a series of recent developments by Air India Express. The airline recently launched operations from Bhopal with daily flights to Delhi and Mumbai, became the first airline to introduce international flights from Navi Mumbai with services to Abu Dhabi, and also launched the first-ever direct air connectivity between Northeast India and the UAE through flights from Guwahati to Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

New Routes Effective 1 September 2026

Additional Daily Flights from 1 September 2026

• Delhi – Bhubaneswar (4 daily flights)

• Delhi – Patna (4 daily flights)

• Delhi – Kochi (2 daily flights)

• Delhi – Varanasi (2 daily flights)
  

With this expansion, Air India Express will operate over 2,700 weekly domestic flights, offering passengers more travel options while strengthening connectivity between India's metropolitan gateways and emerging cities.

Air India has announced a new codeshare partnership with Azerbaijan Airlines, expanding its international network and offering passengers more convenient travel options between India and Baku. The agreement is expected to strengthen business, tourism and cultural ties between the two countries while improving connectivity across both airlines' networks.

As part of the partnership, Air India will place its 'AI' designator code on Azerbaijan Airlines-operated flights between Delhi and Baku and Mumbai and Baku. The arrangement introduces Baku as a new destination for Air India customers, a route that is not currently served by the airline's own aircraft.

Passengers travelling from Delhi, Mumbai and other Indian cities can now book their journey to Baku on a single Air India ticket, with the flight carrying an Air India flight number while being operated by Azerbaijan Airlines.

The codeshare builds on the existing interline agreement between the two carriers, enabling travellers to book seamless journeys on a single itinerary across both airline networks. For example, a passenger travelling from Bangkok can fly with Air India to Delhi and then connect to Baku on an Azerbaijan Airlines flight under one booking.

Commenting on the partnership, Nipun Aggarwal, Chief Commercial Officer, Air India, said:

"At Air India, we believe every corner of the world should be within reach of our customers. Partnerships like this one with Azerbaijan Airlines are central to that vision; they allow us to extend our network beyond the destinations we fly to ourselves. Through this codeshare, our customers travelling to Baku will enjoy convenience and reliability from booking their ticket to check-in and touchdown. This is part of a broader effort to keep strengthening connectivity between India and the rest of the world."

Jamil Manizade, Chief Commercial Officer, Azerbaijan Airlines, added:

"India is one of the world's fastest-growing aviation markets and an increasingly important destination for both business and leisure travel. Our partnership with Air India is an important step in expanding Azerbaijan Airlines' international connectivity through strategic partnerships. By bringing together the strengths of our networks, we are offering passengers greater choice, enhanced connectivity and a more seamless travel experience between Azerbaijan, India and beyond."

Since its privatisation in 2022, Air India has significantly expanded its global partnership network. The airline now has 26 codeshare partnerships and more than 120 interline agreements with leading global carriers, providing customers with seamless access to over 1,000 destinations worldwide.