An ongoing provincial initiative has seen a steady improvement in air access to KwaZulu-Natal.
According to Phindile Makwakwa, the acting chief executive officer of Tourism KwaZulu-Natal, part of the Routes Development Committee whose mandate has been to improve air access to and from King Shaka International Airport, accessibility of the destination is of utmost importance as it is critical to improve trade and attract investment for the province, she says. “The main aim of the committee remains to lobby for more international airlines to land directly at King Shaka International Airport.”
Initially considered to be a white elephant and often the centre of controversy, the new airport – which landed its first commercial f light in 2010 – has become the fastest-growing airport in the country.During its first four years the airport saw only one international carrier introducing a direct route, but since 2014 the Routes Development Committee has managed to bring on board mega airlines such as Emirates, Qatar, Turkish Airways, British Airways, Air Mauritius, Pro-Flight and Air Namibia.
“Great strides have been made by the province in improving air access,” says Makwakwa.One of the goals of the air access strategy, titled ‘Durban Direct’, is to establish the King Shaka International Airport as one of Africa’s preferred cargo airports. Its new locale – in the centre of the Dube TradePort precinct – has provided direct access to a wide variety of freight logistics facilities.
According to Franco Eleuteri, an international specialist in the development and implementation of internationally competitive solutions in the fields of manufacturing, distribution and sea-air-land transportation, the King Shaka International Airport offers the cargo sector a highly competitive operating environment as it continues to seek more direct international connectivity to Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.Eleuteri says having an intercontinental air gateway is critical for value-added logistics.“Air connectivity is of critical importance to industrial development zones and special economic zones,” he says. “If one looks at the most successful IDZs around the world they all have proximity to an international airport. More importantly, it is of increasing importance that these airports are freight focused.”