SAA, Kenya Airways have long-term plan for pan-African airline group

South African Airways and Kenya Airways have signed a cooperation agreement with a long-term view to create a pan-African airline group, the two companies said on Tuesday. “It is not a merger but a partnership that seeks to re-organise KQ and SAA assets into an ecosystem that will make the South African and Kenyan aviation sector more competitive,” Kenya Airways said. SAA said that the pact did not preclude either firm from pursuing commercial cooperation with other carriers and said collaborating would help contain costs. State-owned SAA restarted domestic flights last week and this week launches a scaled-down international service to five African capitals, after its longstanding financial woes were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.<br/>