Air Congo’s new service between Johannesburg and Kinshasa is expected to improve connectivity for corporate travellers on a traditionally difficult route. While established carriers already serve the market, additional capacity could increase competition and keep fares in check.
On March 22, Air Congo launched its inaugural flight from Kinshasa to Johannesburg via Lubumbashi, operated under the Ethiopian Airlines code. Flights depart Johannesburg at 17h30 on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and arrive in Kinshasa at 22h50 after a one-hour stop in Lubumbashi
“This route simplifies access to a high-potential but traditionally hard-to-reach market. It makes doing business across Central and Southern Africa more practical, particularly for regional companies that can’t really spare the time for long, multi‑stop journeys,” said Carmen Hidalgo, Customer Success Team Leader, Corporate Traveller
Jaco Brits, Head of Account Management, FCM, said they had a few customers travelling this route, with around 60 tickets in 12 months. “The route cuts down on travel time, allowing business travellers to spend more time at their destination, which is often valuable.”
From a Corporate Traveller perspective, Hidalgo said the route would support smarter, more confident regional expansion. “When markets become easier to reach, businesses are more willing to invest, travel more frequently, and build stronger relationships and that’s where real growth starts.”
Competitive fares
Despite airlines such as SAA and ASKY already operating three weekly flights between Johannesburg and Kinshasa, another airline on the route could improve competition.
“Corporate travellers prefer direct flights and the new Air Congo flights have a stopover in Lubumbashi so SAA and ASKY would still be more preferred for business travel. However, the competition on this route should drive prices down on all participating airlines which is always welcome,” said Linda Edwards, MD of XL Turners Travel.
“While Air Congo may not be a primary option at this stage, having another airline in the market is a positive thing. It gives passengers more choice and helps keep fares competitive. Adding some healthy competition is a good thing and strengthens the overall market,” said Henry Annandale, Ticketing Manager at TAG Travel.
According to Hidalgo, increased competition will always benefit corporates even if fares didn’t drop immediately. “Competition typically leads to better schedules, improved service levels, and more commercial airline pricing, helping SMEs achieve better overall value, not just cheaper tickets.”
Brits believes that Air Congo could compete with other airlines if they introduced more connecting flights to neighbouring destinations. “I think they will be able to take significant market share from Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines to destinations in their direct vicinity,” said Brits.
Caution over reliability
However, there is some caution regarding the airline’s long-term reliability. “Interest will be strong, especially from businesses already operating in the DRC, but it will be a measured roll-out. Clients will want reassurance around reliability and safety, and we expect many to start by trialling the route before fully adopting it into their travel programmes,” said Hidalgo.
Jonathan Gerber, CEO of TAG Travel, said there was some uncertainty, particularly with a stop in Lubumbashi. “The flight to Lubumbashi connects on to Kinshasa so passengers would be in for a stop if end destination is Kinshasa. We do more travel to Lubumbashi but Airlink offers daily flights on that route.”
With Air Congo operating under the Ethiopian Airlines code, Gerber said it could cause some confusion. “On the GDS they fly under the Ethiopian Airways airline code so not sure the average client would even know if they were booking on Air Congo or not.”
