South African Airways, Swiss join Star Alliance

The Star Alliance April 10 welcomed the first African carrier to join a global airline alliance, as South African Airways became the alliance´s 18th member. Its entry came just days after Swiss became the alliance´s 17th member.

Star said South African will extend the alliance´s network to 21 destinations in Africa.

As for Swiss, Star said that the airline will especially help with extending the alliance´s services to Central Europe, as well as some key intercontinental routes popular with business travelers. Star also noted that Switzerland is a “traditional base” for many of its corporate clients.

Also, with the addition of Zurich, Star now offers connections through eleven European hubs.