Johannesburg – When a health crisis makes the news, the first instinct is either to cancel everything or to carry on as normal. Neither serve you very well.  Instead, start with five questions, asked before departure, not after something goes wrong.

1.Will my travel insurance actually cover this trip?

As Herman Heunes, GM of Corporate Traveller South Africa, explains, travel advisories can impact your trip cover.

“If you travel to a destination against official government ‘Do Not Travel’ warnings, insurers typically void your coverage for trip cancellations and medical emergencies related to the advisory,” says Hunes.

The timing matters too. Many insurers look at when the advisory was issued relative to when you bought your policy. If a severe advisory is issued before you booked your trip or purchased insurance, coverage is usually nullified.

“The advisory level at the time of departure determines a lot,” says Heunes. “Travellers who fly to a destination under an active advisory without checking their policy first can find themselves personally liable for medical, evacuation and repatriation costs that run into the hundreds of thousands.”

It’s an easy fix. Call your insurer or ask your travel management company (TMC) to confirm your specific cover before you book. Not after. And while you’re at it, also confirm whether your destination has any health entry requirements – including vaccinations or screening on arrival – and how your organisation will cover those costs.

2.Does my company actually know where I am?

A travel request form is not a tracking system. In a fast-moving health crisis, the difference between a company that knows you’re in a specific hotel in a specific city on a specific day and one that has you logged as “travelling in the DRC” is significant – and that gap can mean the difference between a swift evacuation and a delayed one.

Larger travel programmes have risk platforms that do this automatically. Many small to medium programmes don’t. If yours falls into the second category, ask your TMC what visibility they have (centralised booking systems and up-to-date traveller profiles make a big difference) – and what needs to happen before you fly.

Importantly, says Heunes, ask your team to register your trip with DIRCO. South Africa’s official travel registration system ensures the government knows you’re in a country if a coordinated evacuation needs to take place. It takes five minutes and costs nothing.

3.What is the health picture in the city I’m visiting?

Country-level warnings are a starting point, not the full story. An outbreak in a border province carries a different risk to one in a capital city with functioning health infrastructure, and a blanket advisory can make a safe trip look dangerous – and vice versa.

Your TMC should be able to provide destination-specific intelligence in addition to the government advisory. That’s where a global network makes a tangible difference.

“Partnering with a TMC that has a global footprint means you can access current, on-the-ground information and local support whenever you need it,” says Heunes. “Networks are a powerful advantage when it comes to duty of care.”

4.If the situation escalates and borders close mid-trip, what is the protocol?

Not “we’ll handle it” – the specific protocol. Who initiates the evacuation process in your organisation? Does your travel agent or TMC have a 24/7 emergency support line? Do you even have the number to call?

“The companies that manage crises well have done the thinking before the crisis, not during it,” says Heunes. “For smaller travel programmes, this is where a good TMC earns its keep – having those protocols already in place, already tested, so the traveller isn’t piecing it together from a hotel room.”

If your programme doesn’t have a documented escalation process, ask your TMC to walk you through what would actually happen, step by step. The answer will tell you a lot.

5.Can I leave early if I feel unsafe … and who covers the cost?

Fare flexibility is rarely top of mind when booking, but it becomes critical fast when a situation deteriorates. Many corporate fares, particularly at the economy end where SME travel budgets live, carry change fees or restrictions that make early departure expensive.

It’s also worth clarifying upfront who has the authority to make the call – whether the decision to abort a trip rests with you, your line manager, or someone further up the chain. In a crisis that moves fast, that ambiguity costs time.

Before you fly, confirm whether your ticket allows for early return, whether your company will cover the cost difference, and whether your insurance includes trip curtailment. If the answer to all three is yes, you can travel with genuine confidence. If not, at least you know what you’re walking into.

“Business travel is how small and medium businesses compete,” says Heunes. “It’s how you close deals, build relationships and show up in markets where presence still matters. The goal is never to stop travelling; it’s to travel in a way that’s informed, protected and sustainable. Ask the right questions before you fly, and you can do exactly that.”

-ENDS–

MEDIA CONTACT

For more information about Corporate Traveller, or to interview Corporate Traveller South Africa GM Herman Heunes, call Sonnette Fourie on 081 072 2869 or email sonnette@bigambitions.co.za.    

About Corporate Traveller

Corporate Traveller is a division of the Flight Centre Travel Group, dedicated to saving businesses across Southern Africa time and money. Corporate Traveller has the benefit of being part of the world’s third-largest travel retailer, leveraging its global negotiating strength. It has access to over 50 of the world’s leading airlines and deals with more than 100 000 hotels around the world to guarantee savings for clients. Corporate Traveller provides clear, consolidated reporting of all its clients’ travel activities, helping them to control travel spend and identify opportunities to save costs.

Issued by:

Big Ambitions

Sonnette Fourie

sonnette@bigambitions.co.za

+27 81 072 2869

Table of Contents

Johannesburg – Travel buyers and travel managers are, once again, navigating interesting times. The Middle East crisis has meant new routes, new hubs and a renewed focus on duty of care. Volatile oil prices and capacity constraints are squeezing costs at the same time. Travellers themselves are warier than they were a year ago, and the journeys they are being asked to take are often longer, with more stopovers and less margin for error.

Against that backdrop, travel perks carry more weight than usual. A flat bed, a lounge shower and a late checkout matter more when you have just flown an extra five hours via a new connection.

What makes this moment especially interesting is the picture sitting just behind it.

Before tensions escalated in February, airlines were betting big on premium economy and business class cabins – overhauling their fleets and offering passengers more space, connectivity, state-of-the-art inflight entertainment and, in some cases, hotel-like privacy. Hotels themselves are pouring investment into luxury and lifestyle properties, with the global luxury hotel market forecast by Skift to more than double to $369 billion by 2032.

All while travel programmes are balancing safety and traveller wellbeing against value and cost management. Competing priorities, all playing out in the small print of what your company will and won’t cover.

The airline perks you might not know about

Status used to mean miles flown. Today, it increasingly means money spent. As The Points Guy puts it, the “hamster wheel” of chasing flights is being replaced by credit card spend, shopping and bookings through an airline’s network of partners (including car rentals) rather than simply bums in seats. 

The perks are varied too – many unseen and underused. Most major programmes now let you extend priority boarding to companions, share lounge access with a plus-one, and occasionally use complimentary upgrades on partner airlines. Lounge access through the right credit card sits in the same category: a perk most eligible travellers underuse.

The biggest unseen perk, though, is corporate. As Herman Heunes, GM of Corporate Traveller South Africa explains, two passengers in the same business class cabin may have paid wildly different fares, depending on how the corporate fares were negotiated behind the scenes.

“Corporate contracts often come with soft ‘perks’ the retail flyer rarely sees,” says Heunes. “Including guaranteed availability, waived change fees, volume rebates, and sometimes even chauffeur transfers on carriers like Emirates and Qatar Airways. This is exactly where a managed travel programme adds value beyond rate.”

What business class actually gets you

The world’s top airlines are getting very serious about their business class offering. Qatar’s QSuite offers sliding doors, “Do Not Disturb” indicators and customisable ambient lighting – not to mention a turndown service complete with pillows, a quilted mattress, plush blanket and PJs. Cathay Pacific’s Aria Suite (winner of the World’s Best Business Class in the 2026 AirlineRatings Awards) has privacy pods, plenty of cubby storage, a 24-inch, 4K in-flight entertainment screen, free Wi-Fi and a 5-star, restaurant-style dining experience.

For Heunes though, business class is often misunderstood.

“While lie-flat seats are great, what corporate buyers are really paying for is productive time: the space to work on a laptop, sleep on an overnight flight, and arrive functional,” says Heunes. “For staff travelling on the long-haul routes that South Africans know so well, rest, productivity and morale means business class pays for itself before the seatbelt sign goes off.”

Hotel perks worth knowing

Hotels are arguably winning the perks race – with many designed around health and wellbeing.

The Wall Street Hotel in New York, for example, has partnered with the ness, a trampoline-based movement studio, to bring intentional, low-impact wellness directly to your room (complete with trampoline and sessions streamed on your in-room smart television). Shangri-La Singapore’s Horizon Club Business Rooms come with adjustable standing desks, dual 4K monitors on request, and complimentary pressing of business clothes. IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) has implemented acoustic doors and heavy soundproofing, while Hyatt’s premium properties supply white noise machines.

Quieter perks are worth knowing about too. Pillow menus, once an outlandish luxury, are now pretty mainstream at upper-tier establishments. The Benjamin Royal Sonesta has a 10-choice pillow menu, and guests can choose from anti-snore, buckwheat, cooling pillows, and Swedish memory foam tailored to their sleep positions.

More mainstream? Most hotels are happy to offer all sorts of things if you only know to ask: chargers, adaptors, sewing kits, toothbrushes and toothpaste, yoga mats, boardgames and even weighted blankets, sleep masks and slippers. Kimpton Vero Beach Hotel in Florida, USA, even runs a “Forgot it? We’ve got it!” programme, letting guests borrow accessories like sunglasses and handbags.

Again, for Heunes, it’s the more practical perks that make the difference.

“Early check-in and late check-out are huge for long-haul travellers,” says Heunes. “Flights out of South Africa often seem to land at unfriendly times. Always check with your travel management company what’s possible, and what can be negotiated. Some hotels also provide a complimentary shuttle service, which is a big perk in anyone’s language!”

What your company will and won’t pay for

Luxury hotels’ concierge services are well-versed in special – often eccentric – requests (including Evian baths, egg-free omelettes and VIP access to shows and events) but, in truth, when it comes to business travel things are far more boring.

As Heunes notes, internal scrutiny of spend has increased and buyers are expected to show financial control while supporting productivity, safety and traveller wellbeing.

Depending on the size of your company (and travel programme) the budget could expand to premium economy or business class on flights over six hours, full board, hotel Wi-Fi, laundry, reasonable tips, and increasingly, properties that support hybrid work with ergonomic desks and good connectivity.

What companies almost universally will not pay for is the minibar, in-room movies, spa treatments outside an approved wellness stipend, seat upgrades without pre-approval, alcohol outside client entertainment, traffic fines, anything for a travelling partner, and direct bookings outside the managed channel.

Which could leave modern business travellers in a slightly awkward position: flown upfront to Heathrow, ergonomically supported at the hotel, and quietly paying for their own packet of cashews from the minibar.

“This is where travel policies are so important,” says Heunes. “Even companies with small travel programmes need to agree on perks and spend – and how reimbursements are managed. It is a core part of any travel programme.”

-ENDS–

MEDIA CONTACT

For more information about Corporate Traveller, or to interview Corporate Traveller South Africa GM Herman Heunes, call Sonnette Fourie on 081 072 2869 or email sonnette@bigambitions.co.za.    

About Corporate Traveller

Corporate Traveller is a division of the Flight Centre Travel Group, dedicated to saving businesses across Southern Africa time and money. Corporate Traveller has the benefit of being part of the world’s third-largest travel retailer, leveraging its global negotiating strength. It has access to over 50 of the world’s leading airlines and deals with more than 100 000 hotels around the world to guarantee savings for clients. Corporate Traveller provides clear, consolidated reporting of all its clients’ travel activities, helping them to control travel spend and identify opportunities to save costs.

Issued by:

Big Ambitions

Sonnette Fourie

sonnette@bigambitions.co.za

+27 81 072 2869

JOHANNESBURG – The UAE has lifted its airspace restrictions, the US-Iran ceasefire appears to be holding (as of 18 May 2026), Emirates has restored 96% of its global network, other Gulf carriers (including Etihad, Qatar and Saudia) continue to rebuild operations, and capacity constraints are gradually settling. By most operational measures, things are looking up.

Traveller confidence is a different story.

As Mummy Mafojane, General Manager of FCM South Africa, explains, geopolitical conflict – including fresh drone attacks – continues to impact travel decisions, with travel managers rerouting travellers, changing itineraries, delaying non-essential trips and taking a hard look at their duty of care policies.

What business travellers are actually feeling

South Africans are fairly resilient by nature. Covid, years of load shedding, economic volatility and the loss of more than one domestic carrier have produced travellers that know how to roll with disruption.

“But business travel complicates the picture,” says Mafojane. “When your company sends you somewhere, a grounded flight is more than an inconvenience. It can quickly become a question of duty of care, insurance, work and family obligations, corporate liability and personal safety, all at once.”

Global Rescue’s recent Traveller Sentiment and Safety Surveys show that 56% of travellers are more concerned about personal safety than a year ago. The travel risk and crisis organisation also found that:

• 82% of travellers express some level of concern about personal security risks abroad, including kidnapping, extortion and violent crime;
• 38% describe today’s travel risk as unpredictable;
• 36% believe international travel is more dangerous than it was before 2020; and
• 31% of seasoned travellers say illness or injury abroad is their biggest concern for 2026, followed by civil unrest or terrorism at 21%.

Can bosses still dictate where and when staff travel?

Legally, in South Africa, the short answer is yes: employers can generally direct where and when employees travel for work, provided the request is reasonable and aligns with the employment contract. In return, they must cover the costs, ensure safe working conditions and respect the employee’s fundamental rights.

Practically, duty of care has evolved well beyond a clause in an employment contract. ISO 31030, the international standard for travel risk management, now sets a benchmark courts use to judge whether an employer acted reasonably.

It requires senior leadership ownership (where the organisation’s appetite for risk is defined, documented, signed off at the top and reviewed regularly), pre-trip risk assessment, real-time tracking and a credible incident response plan. It also explicitly covers psychological wellbeing, not only physical safety.

For South African employers, it means that travel decisions can no longer be made in isolation from the traveller. A reasonable instruction is one that has been thought through, risk-assessed, properly supported and openly discussed with the person being sent.

“Travellers want clarity, choice and a sense that someone has thought carefully about the trip before they board,” says Mafojane. “The companies getting this right have moved from a purely compliance mindset to a conversation. Pre-trip briefings, transparent route options, and a clearly understood escalation path are no longer nice-to-haves; they are the foundations of a strong travel programme.”

The trust “signals” travellers are looking for

For Mafojane, the levels of disruption experienced in late February/early March proved that human-led crisis response – with experienced travel managers at the helm – isn’t going anywhere.

“Automated tools are brilliant, and they certainly speed up our response time, but travellers still turn to human support in times of genuine disruption,” says Mafojane. “A 24-hour line answered by an experienced consultant remains a valuable feature of a corporate travel programme.”

Reliable, consistent technology also builds trust over time.

“Travellers lose confidence quickly when booking systems, itinerary tools, expense platforms and tracking apps fail – or tell them different things,” says Mafojane. “An integrated system, from booking platform to traveller app, should be a reliable source of information. It’s an important aspect of duty of care.”

Finally, more than a passing nod to traveller wellness and wellbeing. Travellers notice the difference. Flexibility on rebooking, openness to bleisure (combining business and leisure travel) where it makes sense, proper pre-trip briefings that cover what to do when things go wrong, and post-trip recovery time are the markers that read as genuine care.

“The programmes that will thrive over the next year are the ones that focus on traveller confidence,” says Mafojane. “Get that right, and the rest follows.”

**ends**

For more information about FCM Travel call Sonnette Fourie on 081 072 2869 or email sonnette@bigambitions.co.za.

About FCM Travel:

FCM Travel, the flagship corporate travel brand at Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG), is the business travel partner of choice for large national, multinational and global corporations. We are an award-winning global corporate travel management company ranking as one of the top five by size around the world. We operate a global network which spans more than 100 countries, employing over 6000 people.

FCM are transforming the business of travel through our empowered and accountable people who deliver 24/7 service and are available either online or offline. Leveraging FCM’s negotiating strength and supplier relationships in conjunction with our tailored business travel programs, our expertise delivers more for our clients where it matters most to them.

Visit us at www.fcmtravel.co.za

Issued by: Big Ambitions

Contact: Sonnette Fourie

Tel: +27 81 072 2869

Email: sonnette@bigambitions.co.za

Table of Contents

JOHANNESBURG – FCM is urging South African corporate travel managers to act immediately to secure seats and lock in flexible fares, as the Middle East conflict triggers a severe capacity squeeze and unprecedented price volatility on key international and local routes.

With more than 30,000 flights cancelled globally since 28 February, the disruption has landed hard on South African businesses. Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad – historically the backbone of long-haul corporate travel from South Africa – have seen ticket volumes collapse by 56% since the crisis broke. Qatar Airways has been the worst-affected, with ticket sales down 77%.

The knock-on effect has been immediate. As corporates scramble to rebook on alternative carriers, seat availability has evaporated and fares have surged. In some cases, FCM consultants have watched business class fares to Europe breach R200,000, and climb further within hours.

“The volatility is unlike anything we’ve seen in recent memory,” said Jaco Brits, Head of Sales and Account Management at FCM South Africa. “We’re quoting a fare, and by the time approval comes back, the price has moved significantly. Seats that existed in the morning are gone by the afternoon.”

Where the volume is going

FCM’s booking data reveals a significant shift in how South African corporates are reaching Europe and Asia. Ethiopian Airlines has emerged as the biggest single beneficiary, with ticket volumes up 21% and revenue up 29% as Addis Ababa becomes the most practical Africa-to-Europe and Africa-to-Asia connection that avoids closed airspace entirely.

European carriers are absorbing significant overflow, with Lufthansa recording a 92% increase in tickets booked and 74% revenue growth from FCM customers. British Airways is up 34% in tickets and 57% in revenue, while Air France has seen a 64% ticket increase and 89% revenue uplift. The message is clear: the shift to these carriers comes with a significant price premium.

Asia-Pacific carriers are seeing the steepest growth from a smaller base. Singapore Airlines is up 120% in tickets and a remarkable 228% in revenue, with Cathay Pacific up 159% in tickets and 147% in revenue, which shows that Asia-bound corporate traffic is being structurally rerouted away from Gulf hubs.

“Corporates are finding ways to keep travelling, but the cost of doing so has fundamentally changed,” said Mummy Mafojane, General Manager of FCM South Africa. “Travel programmes built around Gulf hub connectivity are now exposed. The capacity simply isn’t there on alternative carriers to absorb this volume at pre-crisis prices.”

The death of the cheap, inflexible ticket

One of the most significant behavioural shifts FCM is observing is a move away from non-refundable, non-changeable economy fares. Where corporate bookers once defaulted to the cheapest available option, the current environment is forcing a rethink.

“We’re seeing customers who would never have considered a flexible fare now actively requesting them,” Brits said. “When economy class on an alternative carrier is sold out and the only available option is premium or business, a non-refundable ticket on a disrupted routing becomes a liability, not a saving.”

In several cases, FCM has seen travel managers decline trips altogether when requoted fares exceed policy thresholds, a dynamic that raises its own strategic concern for businesses with time-sensitive international commitments.

The advice from FCM is unambiguous: secure flexible fares now, book and pay in full, and do not wait for the situation to stabilise.

Not all travel is being rerouted, some is simply disappearing

Perhaps the most telling data point in FCM’s analysis is what is happening to travel destined specifically for the Middle East. Post-crisis, that number plummeted by 96%.  Crucially, FCM’s data analysts note that roughly half of this “lost” UAE volume was not rerouted onto substitute carriers. It simply disappeared, indicating outright trip cancellations.

“That tells you something important,” Mafojane said. “For some businesses, the combination of cost, complexity, and regional uncertainty has made travel unviable for now. When a company chooses to cancel a trip rather than rebook, that is a direct hit to business operations and deal-making. Companies need to be having these conversations at a strategic, executive level, not just at the travel desk.”

What SA travel managers must do now

FCM is urging South African travel managers to take three immediate actions:

1. Review budgets now. Travel programmes built before February are no longer financially valid on routes touching Europe, the Middle East, or Asia. Budget holders need to be briefed urgently on the scale of potential overspends.
2. Audit flexible fare and premium cabin policies. If your policy does not allow for premium cabin approval when economy is unavailable, you are creating a situation where critical business travel gets cancelled by default.
3. Check your insurance coverage. Most large South African corporates carry global insurance policies or bank-backed travel cover. These need to be urgently reviewed for war exclusions that may now apply to routes through the affected region.

“The businesses that will navigate this best are the ones that act now, not the ones waiting for Gulf hub operations to normalise,” Mafojane said. “A prolonged recovery is the most likely scenario. Build your travel programme around that reality.”

**ends**

For more information about FCM Travel call Sonnette Fourie on 081 072 2869 or email sonnette@bigambitions.co.za.

About FCM Travel:

FCM Travel, the flagship corporate travel brand at Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG), is the business travel partner of choice for large national, multinational and global corporations. We are an award-winning global corporate travel management company ranking as one of the top five by size around the world. We operate a global network which spans more than 100 countries, employing over 6000 people.

FCM are transforming the business of travel through our empowered and accountable people who deliver 24/7 service and are available either online or offline. Leveraging FCM’s negotiating strength and supplier relationships in conjunction with our tailored business travel programs, our expertise delivers more for our clients where it matters most to them.

Visit us at www.fcmtravel.co.za

Issued by: Big Ambitions

Contact: Sonnette Fourie

Tel: +27 81 072 2869

Email: sonnette@bigambitions.co.za

Table of Contents

Johannesburg – The disruption making life difficult for business travellers today is not always the dramatic, headline-grabbing kind. It is more persistent and, according to the data, entirely predictable.

Eurocontrol reports that nearly one in three European flights now departs late on an ordinary working day. Boston Consulting Group documents hundreds of thousands of annual cancellations caused by the structural grinding of a system at its limits: staff shortages, gate constraints, infrastructure gaps and technology that cannot keep pace with demand.

Disruption, in other words, is now part of the operating environment. The question is whether your travel management company (TMC) has a response that matches that reality, warns Herman Heunes, General Manager of Corporate Traveller South Africa.

“Anyone can book a flight when everything is working,” says Heunes. “The true value of a travel partner is defined at 11pm when the flight is cancelled, the alternatives are filling up fast, and your traveller has a critical meeting at 8am the next morning. That is the moment that separates a booking agent from a genuine travel partner.”

Visibility is the starting point

Heunes argues that a gold standard travel crisis response starts long before a flight is cancelled, beginning with the foundational issue of visibility. If bookings are scattered across consumer websites and direct airline channels, a travel provider is effectively flying blind. In a disruption, the first hour is critical. If that time is spent identifying who is affected rather than solving the problem, the best rebooking options are already gone.

“Centralised booking is not only a control measure; it is a rescue capability,” says Heunes. The point is illustrated by a real case: when conflict broke out in the Middle East at the end of February, Corporate Traveller had Helen Keller International travellers en route to Cambodia for a team event. Thirty flights were simultaneously impacted. Because all bookings were held in a single system, every affected traveller was identified instantly, and the entire group was rerouted in under two business days. “That speed – under those conditions – is only possible when you have total visibility from the start.”

Data precision makes the difference

This speed of response is further dictated by the precision of traveller data. A crisis is won or lost in the minutes, and if a consultant is forced to chase a stranded executive for passport details or visa information while seats vanish in real time, the battle is already lost.

“An outdated traveller profile is a liability,” says Heunes. “Travel support requires complete, actionable details that are ready to go. You cannot be asking for a passport number while the last available seat on the only flight out is being sold to someone else.”

Technology and human judgement working together

While technology provides essential infrastructure for crisis response, Heunes maintains that the most effective support comes when digital tools and personalised human expertise work in sync. Modern travel platforms now offer instant alerts on flight disruptions and automated itinerary updates the moment plans change. This visibility gives both travellers and travel managers the information they need to act quickly.

Mobile platforms have become particularly valuable, delivering gate changes, delay notifications and cancellation alerts directly to travellers wherever they are. When integrated with risk management tools, these platforms can also push proactive messaging during broader disruptions, ensuring travellers receive relevant safety information and alternative options without having to search for them.

However, technology reaches a ceiling when a disruption turns complex. An app can notify a traveller that a flight is cancelled and even suggest alternatives, but it cannot assess whether the fastest reroute has a visa complication for a specific passport. It cannot negotiate a seat that is not showing publicly. And it cannot read the nuance of a situation where a traveller needs reassurance as much as they need a solution.

“When a traveller is stranded at midnight, they do not want a chatbot decision tree,” Heunes says. “They want an expert with the authority to make a judgment call and the empathy to stay on the line until it is fixed. The technology keeps everyone informed, but it is the human response that solves the problem.”

“Genuine 24/7 support is not just an open phone line or an automated alert. It is having people on the other end who know the account and stay ahead of the problem. We want to be calling the traveller before they even realise they need us.”

The cost of getting it wrong

The hidden consequences of a poor response rarely show up on a travel report. They appear instead in the deal that did not close or the executive who arrived at a conference exhausted and underprepared. Heunes observes that while businesses focus on the cost of the ticket, they should be focused on the cost of the ticket not working, which is invariably higher.

A robust response also extends to the administrative aftermath. Refunds, fare differences and ticket reissues can drag on for weeks, creating a second wave of stress for travel bookers managing Finance queries long after the traveller has landed safely.

“A travel partner is only truly up to the job if they are proactively updating the travel booker on the status of refunds and final charges,” Heunes says. “Leaving a booker to handle the administrative fallout alone after a crisis is a failure of service.”

Does your TMC understand your travellers?

Ultimately, Heunes suggests that the most practical step for any business is to evaluate whether their current travel partner truly understands where their people are going and what kind of support they need when things go wrong. This means looking beyond price to assess whether the TMC offers personalised support that matches the complexity and destinations of the company’s travel programme.

“Disruption in global aviation is not going to ease, and these structural pressures are not short term problems,” Heunes concludes. “Businesses cannot control the system, but they can control their response. The first step is knowing, honestly, whether the partner they have trusted with their people is up to the task.”

-ENDS-

MEDIA CONTACT

For more information about Corporate Traveller, or to interview Corporate Traveller South Africa GM Herman Heunes, call Sonnette Fourie on 081 072 2869 or email sonnette@bigambitions.co.za.    

About Corporate Traveller

Corporate Traveller is a division of the Flight Centre Travel Group, dedicated to saving businesses across Southern Africa time and money. Corporate Traveller has the benefit of being part of the world’s third-largest travel retailer, leveraging its global negotiating strength. It has access to over 50 of the world’s leading airlines and deals with more than 100 000 hotels around the world to guarantee savings for clients. Corporate Traveller provides clear, consolidated reporting of all its clients’ travel activities, helping them to control travel spend and identify opportunities to save costs.

Issued by:

Big Ambitions

Sonnette Fourie

sonnette@bigambitions.co.za

+27 81 072 2869

Three weeks on, and flights are slowly returning. As an example, Emirates has resumed operations and is progressively rebuilding capacity. They’re currently operating two daily flights from Johannesburg and one daily flight from Cape Town, with plans to resume three weekly flights from Durban as soon as possible.

But as Herman Heunes, GM of Corporate Traveller explains, while operations have resumed, the situation can change in an instant, with delays, cancellations and restricted schedules still impacting travel plans.

We sat down with the Corporate Traveller team to discuss exactly what travel managers, travel bookers and travellers need to know right now.

1.Capacity is still constrained – and pricing reflects it

The Middle East normally acts as the primary aviation corridor connecting South Africa to Europe, Asia and beyond. When thousands of flights are cancelled or rerouted, you remove a massive amount of inventory from the market. Supply disappears but demand does not.

And as Heunes explains, capacity is not the only factor at play.

“Fares are climbing for several reasons. Yes, supply and demand is a factor, but so are rising oil prices, longer flight paths and associated operational costs (as airlines avoid restricted airspace), and increased operational expenses, including insurance premiums, which are often passed on to travellers.”

2.New routes are filling up – fast

Alternative hubs, including Addis Ababa, Singapore and various European gateways, are growing in popularity as travellers seek non-Gulf routings, further compressing available capacity and driving up last-minute prices.

Corporate Traveller’s latest booking data shows a spike in sales for, among others, Ethiopian Airlines (+100%), British Airways (+100%), Virgin Atlantic (+303%), Lufthansa (+103%), KLM (+114%), Air France (+20%), Singapore Airlines (+109%), Cathay Pacific (+106%) and Air China (+225%).

For Heunes, the practical implication is clear: if your team is booking independently, they are competing for constrained seats, without the expertise, priority access and supplier relationships that a managed travel programme provides.

3.Travel insurance – still your best bet

Perhaps the most pressing question over the last few weeks has been around what  travel insurance will – and won’t – cover.

Speaking on an ASATA webinar during the week, Jason Veitch, Business Head for Accident & Health at Santam Travel Insurance (formerly TIC) explained that war is a universal exclusion across all travel insurance products globally. It’s not unique to South Africa, any single insurer, or indeed the travel industry.

 “War exclusions exist because the scale of conflict can affect hundreds of thousands of travellers simultaneously – and no insurance pool can absorb that,” says Veitch. “But while war exclusions apply to trip cancellation and curtailment, including additional accommodation costs; other benefits, like medical, remain in place.”

This is important, because unexpected medical costs can be crippling for travellers.

 “The main reason for travel insurance is actually medical,” says Veitch. “And that’s what sometimes gets lost in these conversations. Medical cover is still available. Luggage cover is still available. Other benefits are still available. We have had policyholders in hospitals in the region being cared for under their travel insurance. That’s exactly what a policy is there for.”

For Heunes, travel insurance remains a non-negotiable. But it’s important to read the Ts&Cs.

“Different policies will have different wording dealing with war exclusions, known events and government advisories,” says Heunes. “It’ll impact companies doing business in different regions across the world. Understanding what your team is covered for, including medical evacuations, and what territorial limitations might apply, is critical to managing risk.”

4.Airline policies – where does their responsibility begin and end?

During a disruption of this nature, airlines have clear obligations to their passengers. If your flight is cancelled before you depart, you are entitled to an alternative flight or a full refund, with no penalties. If you have already departed and find yourself stranded mid-journey, that responsibility expands: the airline must rebook you, reroute you through partner carriers if necessary, and accommodate you until you reach your final destination.

However, if you choose to cancel a forward booking on a flight that is still operating, standard cancellation terms apply. Check your fare conditions carefully and contact the airline or your travel expert before making that call.

It’s also worth noting that fares are locked at the time of booking – no fuel surcharge increases will be applied to existing trips.

“We have to acknowledge the response of the airlines,” says Heunes. “Emirates, Etihad and Qatar have handled an extraordinarily difficult situation with real professionalism. Extended call centre hours, regular updates and clear communication with agents – they’ve worked hard to keep the trade informed and to process changes and refunds as quickly as possible. It’s made a real difference.”

5.Duty of care – do you know where your people are?

As Heunes explains, any company with a travel programme – big or small – has a duty of care to its travellers. In practice, that means having a clear travel policy in place; access to reliable pre-trip travel information; clear restrictions on travel to higher-risk countries; the ability to locate and contact your travellers quickly in an emergency; and a crisis management plan for when things go wrong.

“This is where a travel management company proves its worth,” says Heunes. “When a crisis hits, visibility is everything. A centralised booking system; 24/7 emergency support; strong airline partners; crisis management plans – it’s all part of a managed travel programme.”

-ENDS-

MEDIA CONTACT

For more information about Corporate Traveller, or to interview Corporate Traveller South Africa GM Herman Heunes, call Sonnette Fourie on 081 072 2869 or email sonnette@bigambitions.co.za.    

About Corporate Traveller

Corporate Traveller is a division of the Flight Centre Travel Group, dedicated to saving businesses across Southern Africa time and money. Corporate Traveller has the benefit of being part of the world’s third-largest travel retailer, leveraging its global negotiating strength. It has access to over 50 of the world’s leading airlines and deals with more than 100 000 hotels around the world to guarantee savings for clients. Corporate Traveller provides clear, consolidated reporting of all its clients’ travel activities, helping them to control travel spend and identify opportunities to save costs.

Issued by:

Big Ambitions

Sonnette Fourie

sonnette@bigambitions.co.za

+27 81 072 2869