TURKISH AIRLINES will withdraw from the South African route on March 29 next year. The decision was taken two years ago, but withdrawn at the time after strong political intervention. The airline will close its offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town at the end of March, with no current arrangements in place for staff, who will have to look elsewhere for employment. An Airbus A340 currently flies twice a week on the Istanbul-Johannesburg route. A third weekly service was withdrawn earlier this year. The major reason for termination of the service appears to be the fall-off in passenger volumes. With the poor rand-dollar exchange rate, the airline has not found the route to be viable. Cargo loads northbound have been good throughout the year, but these are minimal on the southbound leg, a factor which has also made this a less profitable sector of the airlineÕs operation. In November 2000 Turkish Airlines considered terminating the service, but had pressure placed on it when a delegation from the South African government supported by members of the Turkish Embassy in South Africa flew to Istanbul to seek a stay of execution. Turkey is South AfricaÕs fifth biggest trading partner, and has been a useful transhipment route for South African exports, mainly heavy cargo loads, to destinations in the former Soviet Union, where major construction works are in progress. Istanbul has also been a quick transhipment hub for South African perishable produce bound for the Far East. Cargo northbound has been a mainstay for the airline since it commenced service to South Africa in 1997. Services will continue unchanged until the end of March 2003, says South African GSA Airline Cargo Resources (ACR), which will in the interim examine other options to replace the existing service after that date.
