Germany’s national flag carrier, Lufthansa, has announced that it will reinstate direct flights between Munich, in the German state of Bavaria, and Johannesburg, with effect from June 4 next year. The service will be operated year-round, and will complement the airline’s existing daily services between Frankfurt and Johannesburg. (Switzerland’s flag carrier, SWISS, is also a member of the Lufthansa group and also operates daily flights to Johannesburg, but from Zurich).

“With this new non-stop flight, we will increase the travel choices from Johannesburg substantially in addition to the existing one to Frankfurt,” affirmed Lufthansa Group Airlines GM sales Southern Africa Matthias Lefevre. “Both year-round routes can also be combined and are priced at the same level. Passengers will find seats on a Boeing 747-8 (Jumbo) or an Airbus A350 with Lufthansa deploying one of its most popular and comfortable aircrafts [sic] to show its commitment to South Africa.”

The Munich route will be operated with new-generation Airbus A350-900 airliners. These are configured to carry a total of 293 passengers, split between business class, premium economy class and economy class. This service will depart from Johannesburg at 9 AM each day, thus giving an alternative in time, as well as route, to Germany.

Munich is Lufthansa’s second hub (after Frankfurt). Passengers from South Africa will be able to connect to some 130 destinations in Germany, Europe, America, the Middle East and Asia, directly from Munich. It is Germany’s second-biggest airport and Europe’s seventh-biggest.

“Munich, an award-winning airport, is a very relaxing and beautiful place to arrive after a long-haul flight,” highlighted Lefevre.

Munich itself is the capital of Bavaria and has a population of 1.5-million. Famous for its Oktoberfest and its Christmas market, it is actually one of Germany’s most important economic centres. Major Germany-based multinational corporations with their head offices in the Munich area include Allianz, BMW and Siemens. Bavaria, as a whole, is also a major tourist destination, with scenic lakes, historical locations and easy and quick access to the Alps mountains.

Lufthansa’s previous Munich-Johannesburg service was last operated in 2005.