Sunday, July 27, 2025
Innovatively, successful a bid to reignite nan aerial recreation and economical recovery, nan metropolis of Tshwane has announced that flights betwixt Pretoria’s Wonderboom National Airport and Cape Town will beryllium reinstated. The determination follows a suspension of these flights successful 2018, erstwhile concerns astir profitability clipped nan route. This is according to Deputy Mayor Eugene Modise, who made nan announcement astatine nan Wonderboom National Airport connected Friday, wherever nan Children’s Flight 2025 programme took place, which saw much than 1,000 disadvantaged kids being introduced to nan world of aviation.
Modise said that Wonderboom National Airport is strategically important to Tswana successful position of nan section system and that nan airdrome is simply a benignant of anchor for redevelopment. The purpose is to person nan airdrome operational and a hub for tourism, trade, and investment. It bodes good to propulsion Tshwane up into a location and world connectivity player.
Reviving Pretoria-Cape Town Flights
Flights betwixt Pretoria and Cape Town were suspended successful 2018 pending a viability study. Tshwane, successful a caller administration, is committed to reintroducing nan route. The metropolis is engaging nan South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) to reactivate and renew nan applicable licenses for Pretoria-Cape Town flights. We dream this will beryllium done successful nan adjacent fewer months, and we will person a nonstop aerial nexus betwixt nan 2 cities.”
Modise besides indicated that, successful summation to nan return of nan Pretoria to Cape Town route, nan preamble of a caller formation linking Pretoria to Durban mightiness besides beryllium nether consideration. It’s giving an other push to wider metropolis plans to amended nexus up pinch location and world markets, frankincense opening nan doorway to moreover much business-related and holiday-minded aerial flow. The upgrading of nan airdrome will besides lend to section economical improvement – and connection a boost to tourism successful nan Tshwane area.
Wonderboom National Airport, nan bosom of economical growth
Modise emphasized to nan House that nan Wonderboom National Airport is an economical pillar for Tshwane, not conscionable an aerial carrier gateway. He pointed retired that nan airdrome could turn tourism, trade, and jobs, and mightiness develop, to nan city’s advantage, into an important economical powerhouse. The metropolis is preparing to return nan airdrome to marketplace and activity investors who tin create it much effectively.
The airport’s section economical value to nan Tshwane region was highlighted by past month’s announcement that AERO South Africa, an aviation show antecedently held astatine Wonderboom National Airport, would move to nan caller airport. AERO South Africa organizer, Messe Frankfurt South Africa, opted not to renew its statement pinch Tshwane pursuing nan arena successful 2024, moving alternatively nan three-day arena to Lanseria International Airport. It has, however, secured further accords to usage Wonderboom National Airport for immoderate different projects and business ventures.
Children’s Flight 2025 Programme: Educating nan Leaders of Tomorrow
The news of Tshwane aerial recreation betterment follows difficult connected nan heels of nan successful 10th version of nan Children’s Flight 2025, an arena that took complete 1,000 underprivileged children into nan sky. They are supported by much than 150 pilots and much than 100 nationwide sponsors of nan programme successful an effort to bring children into nan world of aviation and perchance lead them to careers arsenic pilots, engineers, technicians, and aerial controllers.
For galore of nan children, this was nan first clip they had been successful a helicopter, proving to them that nan entity is not nan limit. Modise stressed nan value of influencing young minds successful bid to animate nan innovators, change-makers, and leaders of tomorrow. The kids who attended this arena will beryllium much tin of dreaming bigger and aiming higher successful their futures.
It is besides a testament to nan expertise of aviation to unfastened doors for young group from each walks of life. By introducing them to nan section of aviation, nan programme offers a first look astatine profession paths they whitethorn person ne'er considered.
A Positive Community Impact
The Kids Flight 2025 task was beautiful influential successful nan community. It was aimed astatine children from registered attraction homes/counties, etc, who whitethorn not person had nan chance to acquisition flying. “To beryllium capable to springiness these types of experiences, life-changing, formative, to underprivileged kids who sometimes don’t cognize thing different than their mundane surviving situation, I deliberation it’s a large deal,” said arena organizer Felix Gosher.
Tshwane’s MMC for Roads and Transport, Tlangi Mogale, mentioned nan happiness this arena has managed to bring nan children and nan larger community. “This thrust not only gives kids nan chance to consciousness what it is for illustration to alert but besides allows section businesses to get involved, and that promotes unity and organization spirit,” Mogale said.
Tshwane’s Commitment to Local Growth
The city’s attraction connected revitalising aerial recreation and boosting Wonderboom National Airport is conscionable 1 portion of its broader strategy to boost section maturation and summation Tshwane’s spot successful nan location economy. Modise stressed that managing to reconstruct nan flights and summation nan operations of nan airdrome would person immense economical spin-offs for Tshwane residents, arsenic it would thief create jobs and heighten economical participation.
While talks are ongoing pinch nan South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA), among others, Tshwane tin expect a monolithic shake-up that will redefine nan city’s economical profile. The reintroduced Pretoria-Cape Town flights are not only an accrued convenience for South Africans, but besides expected to person a spin-off effect connected tourism and nan business environment.
Looking Forward: A New Era for Tshwane
“It is precisely this imagination for nan rebirth of flights betwixt Pretoria and Cape Town and attempts to make [Wonderboom National Airport] an instrumentality successful location connectivity that illustrates that nan City of Tshwane is committed to economical growth. Projects, specified arsenic nan revitalization of nan airport, together pinch projects specified arsenic nan Children’s Flight programme, exemplify Tshwane’s committedness to nan early of its citizens and their children.
Revival successful Tshwane is planned astir nan aviation manufacture which is simply a very breathtaking caller era for nan city. With flights group to erstwhile again return disconnected (and nan anticipation of caller routes), Tshwane is becoming thing of an basal carrier node and a cardinal subordinate successful economical occurrence successful South Africa.
(Source: City of Tshwane, South African Civil Aviation Authority, Messe Frankfurt South Africa, Lanseria International Airport, Felix Gosher, Tlangi Mogale)