The Lufthansa Group has announced that it will operate an unprecedented number of flights between Europe and South Africa during the 2026-27 northern winter/southern summer season, starting at the end of October. Extra flights will take the total number of flights operated to and from South Africa by the Lufthansa and SWISS airlines to 38 a week.
“South Africa is one of Lufthansa Group’s most important long-haul markets in Africa, and our [northern] winter 2026-27 schedule reflects that confidence,” affirms Lufthansa Group Airlines senior director North, East and Southern Africa René Koinzack. “With more flights, better overnight timings from Johannesburg and our latest cabin products on key routes, we are giving South African travellers more choice, more comfort and stronger access into Europe and beyond. This is a historic moment for the Lufthansa Group in South Africa.”
Lufthansa will add two flights between Munich and Johannesburg, to take the frequency to five a week. These flights will be operated on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, using Airbus A350-900 airliners. (The Munich-Johannesburg route was only reinstated two years ago.) As a result of customer demand, the flights in both directions will be night flights, with the return flights, coded LH 579, leaving Johannesburg (OR Tambo International Airport) at 19:55 and reaching Munich at 05:00 the next day.
And the airline will be adding a flight to its Frankfurt-Cape Town route. This will make this connection a daily service. It will be operated using Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft. Lufthansa’s Munich-Cape Town service, which is daily, will continue as normal; this is operated using A350-900s.
All aircraft used on the routes to Cape Town – both the 787s and A350s – will be fitted with Lufthansa’s new Allegris cabin, in all three classes: business, premium economy and economy. Allegris cabins use the latest technology and high-quality materials.
SWISS, which operates a daily flight between Zurich and Johannesburg, will upgrade its service on this route by employing brand-new Airbus A350s fitted with its totally redesigned “SWISS senses” long-haul cabin. Offering improved comfort, this embraces all four classes available in this layout.
And another Lufthansa Group airline, Switzerland-based leisure carrier Edelweiss, will continue to operate its Zurich-Cape Town service, up to five times a week. These nonstop flights are also operated with A350s.
