South Africa is pushing to establish a direct air link with India ahead of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in 2027, as government and tourism officials look to make it easier for one of the country’s key emerging markets to reach South Africa, Getaway reported on August 11.
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille said high-level discussions are under way with South African Airways and private Indian carriers about launching a direct route, involving the departments of Tourism, Transport, and Trade, Industry and Competition. South Africa’s High Commissioner to India, Professor Anil Sooklal, is also engaging with the Indian business sector on the proposal.
No direct India-South Africa route currently exists. Travellers flying between Johannesburg and Mumbai must connect through cities including Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Doha or Dubai. Airbus identified the Johannesburg-Mumbai connection as one of the world’s most underserved routes in a study released earlier this year.
India is already South Africa’s largest source market among the original BRIC countries, ahead of Brazil, Russia and China. The country recorded 69,680 Indian visitors in 2025, out of 213,138 total arrivals from the four BRIC nations combined. South Africa is targeting 100,000 Indian visitors for 2026, having already recorded 12,912 arrivals from India in the first quarter of the year.
Sooklal said the absence of a direct connection was a disadvantage for trade, noting that Indian businesses regularly raise the issue given the impact of lengthy transit times. The push follows other route expansions in 2026, including new direct service between Johannesburg and Madrid, and between São Paulo and Cape Town.
The 2027 tournament, co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia in October and November, will feature 14 teams under a new three-stage format, with India already among the qualified sides. De Lille said South African Tourism plans to monitor ticket sales from October and work with the private sector on travel packages encouraging fans to extend their stay beyond match days, targeting cricket-loving markets including India, England, Australia, Pakistan and New Zealand.
De Lille noted that Kenya, Ethiopia and Rwanda are also in talks with Indian carriers about direct connections, as competition grows among African destinations for Indian travellers. South Africa recorded 10.5mn international arrivals in 2025, with arrivals between January and May 2026 up 12.8% year on year.