Like Munich airport, O R Tambo airport is also very modern (in part). There are lots of people off various flights in the Immigration Hall but the queues move swiftly and I'm soon walking to baggage reclaim. My checked bag arrives promptly and I'm soon in the Arrivals Hall. I've flown to Johannesburg so that I can have a meeting with one of my firm's suppliers. A car and driver have been pre-booked and I meet up with the well-spoken young man and we walk to his 'people carrier'. We're past the worst of the morning rush and bowl along the complex network of motorways, reaching our supplier's works in good time. A useful and pleasant meeting takes most of the morning and then my driver returns me to the airport. This time, he has to avoid part of the motorway route because of delays caused by roadworks. My large bag was already checked in and labelled for Cape Town at Manchester and I have my Boarding Pass for this third leg so I only have to find the 'Bag Drop' and make my way to the South African Airways domestic lounge.
There are plenty of computer stations available and the internet connection is fast. All too soon, they're calling my flight to Cape Town so I make my way to Gate D1 where they're already boarding passengers.
This time, the aircraft is a Boeing 737-800. As I walk down the glass-sided airbridge to the aircraft, I notice the last three letters of the aircraft registration painted on the nose wheel hatch cover - 'Sierra Juliet Foxtrot'. The seating is 2+3 and a moveable bulkhead makes the first seven rows business class. I'm in 4A again and, again, the whole aircraft is packed. It's around two hours to Cape Town and they serve us a reasonable meal on the way. On arrival, we park at a separate stand and disembark through portable stairs. A modern shuttle bus takes us a short distance to the terminal. More later!
All my pictures from the trip are here.
