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At the moment, South Africa has three main international Airports – O.R. Tambo, Cape Town and King Shaka International Airports.

Now, there are plans to add a fourth international airport to the country in Hoedspruit.

The Maruleng local municipality says plans are at an advanced stage to acquire an international airport licence for Hoedspruit’s Eastgate airport, situated on the foothills of the Klein Drakensberg mountain at the border between Mpumalanga and Limpopo.

Yes, that is just a stone’s throw away from the Kruger National Park. The move to open the airport up to international travellers should make it easier for everyone to get to and from the Kruger. The park already sees approximately 1 million visitors every year, but getting there is a hassle and costs a small fortune.

But plans are in the works to make things a little easier for okes to try and spot the Big Five. BusinessTech reported that the Limpopo provincial government issued a statement last month stating that Ms Florence Radzilani, MEC for Transport and Community Safety in Limpopo, met with Cllr Tsheko Musolwa, the Mayor of Maruleng Local Municipality to discuss the decision of the Executive Committee to have the Hoedspruit Airport accorded an international license and to plan the next steps accordingly.

“This decision was informed by the number of passengers using the Hoedspruit Airport annually. Before the Covid-19 disruptions, the airport saw more than 71,000 passengers through its facilities, with over 75% of these being international tourists from Central Europe and the Scandinavian Countries,” said the statement.

“Most of them land in Cape Town and proceed to the Hoedspruit Airport, which is the gateway to the Kruger Transfrontier Park and many other attraction sites in the eastern part of the country.”

The statement added that the international license will be an added advantage to both the tourism and agricultural sectors, which are the mainstay of the Maruleng and the Provincial Economy.

Musolwa lamented that the connecting flights currently needed from either OR Tambo and Cape Town International Airport rob the Limpopo province of additional revenue, as tourists opt for overnight stays in Johannesburg and Cape Town before their connecting flights to Hoedspruit.

He added that a bottleneck is also created during peak seasons as there are only two connecting flights from Cape Town and three from Joburg.

Private game reserve and lodge owners in the area also agree that the international airport licence will benefit everyone in the value chain.

Well, the plans are in an advanced stage, so watch the space.

[source:businesstech]