Delta Air Lines and United Airlines have both submitted applications to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) requesting modifications to their flight operations between the United States and South Africa to align with seasonal travel demand.
Delta aims to shift two of its weekly frequencies from its Atlanta-Johannesburg route to its Atlanta-Cape Town service during the northern winter season. If approved, this adjustment would increase the Atlanta-Cape Town route from three to five flights per week between October 26, 2025, and March 28, 2026.
Once the peak season concludes, these two frequencies would be reassigned to the Atlanta-Johannesburg route. Delta believes this change would help accommodate higher demand for Cape Town during the Southern Hemisphere’s summer while maintaining overall service levels to South Africa. The additional Cape Town flights would be operated using Airbus A350-900 aircraft.
Efficiency
United Airlines is also proposing modifications to its South Africa services. Currently, the airline offers daily Newark-Johannesburg flights and three weekly Newark-Cape Town flights. United is seeking approval to reallocate one of its Newark-Johannesburg flights to Cape Town, increasing the Newark-Cape Town service to four flights per week while reducing Newark-Johannesburg to six weekly flights.
Additionally, United is requesting flexibility to operate some Newark-Johannesburg flights with a stop in Cape Town, depending on demand and operational factors. This would enable the airline to offer a Newark–Johannesburg–Cape Town–Newark routing, similar to an arrangement previously granted to Delta. United argues that these adjustments would enhance service to Cape Town during peak demand periods while improving operational efficiency.
Both airlines emphasize that their proposals do not increase the total number of flights between the U.S. and South Africa but rather redistribute existing frequencies to better align with passenger demand. The DOT has yet to make a decision on these requests.
United first launched its Newark-Johannesburg route in June 2021 and resumed Newark-Cape Town flights in December 2021. Delta introduced its Atlanta-Cape Town service in December 2022, complementing its Atlanta-Johannesburg-Cape Town-Atlanta routing.
Market intelligence data from Sabre indicates that total passenger traffic between the U.S. and South Africa reached approximately 836,400 in 2024, reflecting a 6.8% increase from the previous year and a 6.9% rise compared to 2019 levels. The busiest route in 2024 was New York-Cape Town, followed by New York-Johannesburg and Atlanta-Johannesburg.