RTW to include St Helena?
 

BA/Comair have announced a new weekly service (Saturdays) between Johannesburg and the island of St Helena from this summer.

JNB-HLE dep 08:20 arr 11:30
HLE-JNB dep 12:30 arr 18:30

Once tickets are on sale, I'm hoping that it will be possible to incorporate these two legs into a RTW. Since there are no other flights in/out of HLE (apart from a possible charter airline from Luton, England) it will be interesting to see if it can be counted as a South African route when the RTW starts in JNB.

MRU, which also has a BA/Comair service, allows JNB-MRU-LHR...., but won't allow a return leg JNB-MRU-JNB as it considers re-entry into SA to be the end of the ticket. Since there is no option but to return to JNB from HLE, maybe it will be considered an "internal" SA flight, so beginning the RTW something like CPT-JNB-HLE-JNB-LHR....?

You can't transit the country of origin between international legs, so JNB-HLE-JNB would only be valid if you're originating somewhere besides South Africa. And BTW BA flies to Gatwick from MRU.

Gardyloo,

Two very good points.

I'd forgotten the "country of origin" rule; also that MRU to London switched from LHR to LGW some years ago - and they dropped F class.

Or originate in Nambia (close to SA price) and fly WDH-JNB-HLE-JNB...

When do these flights start?

Also, if anyone is seriously considering taking them, just be aware of the entry requirements:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-ad...y-requirements

Looks like July. Not clear when Ascension Island (presumably ASI) will be available.

http://en.mercopress.com/2016/03/08/...boeing-737-800

Opening postponed
 

AIRPORT OPENING CEREMONY POSTPONED
St Helena Government today confirms that further safety and operational work is required prior to the Official Opening of the Island’s new Airport – and that this event has therefore been postponed. While this means that the Airport will not officially open on 21 May 2016 as originally planned, the safety of aircraft and passengers is of course paramount.
Last week the Island’s Air Service Provider, Comair, brought a Boeing 737-800 aircraft to St Helena on an ‘Implementation Flight’. The crew was able to gather real time information on the conditions at St Helena’s new Airport to assist in preparations for the commencement of scheduled air services. The objectives of the Implementation Flight included route assessment, airside operations, passenger and cargo handling, training and various aspects of safety at St Helena Airport.
One outcome of the Implementation Flight has been the gathering of additional data on turbulence and windshear on the approach to Runway 20 (from the North). As a result of the data gathered and the conditions experienced, it has been decided that there is some additional work to be done in order to ensure the safe operation of scheduled passenger flights to and from St Helena Airport.
Windshear refers to a change in wind speed or direction, including a rapid change over a short distance. Difficult wind conditions, including turbulence and windshear, are encountered and safely managed at many airports around the world.
All parties are now working hard to get a better understanding of how windshear conditions can be mitigated at St Helena Airport – assessing what measures need to be taken to ensure the safety of incoming aircraft landing on Runway 20. Everyone involved remains committed to commencing commercial flights to and from St Helena at the earliest possible opportunity.
SHG – working with all parties – has taken the decision to postpone the planned Official Opening Ceremony until a solution is found to manage this important safety issue.
The Official Opening of St Helena Airport will now take place at a later date which has yet to be determined.
The public will be kept informed as this work progresses.
SHG
26 April 2016