Premium Travelers Name South African Airways the Best in Africa Global Traveler Readers have Chosen the Airline Three Consecutive Years

Morrisville, PA (PRWEB) January 21, 2007

Global Traveler is pleased to announce that, for the third consecutive year, South African Airways has won the GT Tested Award for Best Airline in Africa. The airline was awarded this honor by Global Traveler readers who participated in a survey that ran in the magazine from February 2006 to August 2006.

SAA will be recognized at an awards luncheon on January 23, 2007 at the Jumeirah Essex House in New York City. Francis X. Gallagher, publisher and CEO of Global Traveler, will honor the winners at the gala ceremony, accompanied by Cynthia Nixon, star of Sex and the City. Nixon will speak to attendees on behalf of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

"The awards luncheon is a celebration of the accomplishments of all our award winners," Gallagher said. "Our readers have recognized them as the cream of the crop; however, this luncheon also reminds all of us that it's time to give back. By benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, we have the opportunity to help and celebrate personal good fortune by helping those hindered by misfortune. However, I do want to congratulate all of our winners for their achievements in the world of travel and the work they do that puts them a step ahead of the competition."

"We're honored to have been chosen as the Best Airline in Africa by Global Traveler for the past three years. These accolades are a testament to our commitment to offer our customers the absolute best service to Africa," said Marc Cavaliere, executive vice president of the Americas, South African Airways.

For a complete list of winners and to read the full awards article, visit http://www.globaltravelerusa.com.

About the Survey

Global Traveler conducted the third annual survey of its readers from February 1, 2006 to August 31, 2006, with open-ended questions for the best in 42 categories of business and luxury travel. A total of 13,653 completed questionnaires were received. The questionnaires were made available as a six-page insert in subscriber copies of the magazine and online at the Global Traveler website http://www.globaltravelerusa.com/readersurvey. Only those questionnaires in which more than 50 percent of the questions were completed were counted; those answering fewer than 50 percent of the questions were discarded. Responses also were screened for duplication. Members of the travel industry and employees of FXExpress Publications were not allowed to participate.

Survey respondents spent a mean number of 61 nights last year on international business trips and 76 nights on domestic business trips. They took an average of 18 international flights and 21 domestic flights per person during that period. Of all respondents, 76 percent were male and 24 percent were female; average age was 45.

About South African Airways

South African Airways features the only nonstop service from the United States to South Africa with daily departures from Washington and New York* and four weekly direct flights from Chicago (effective May 9, 2007) that offer travel convenience, award-winning service and the quickest route to South Africa. The airline's Africa network is unsurpassed, featuring connections to more than 20 destinations within South Africa and more than 20 cities across the continent, making the airline the savvy traveler's "gateway to Africa." As a recent member to the worldwide Star Alliance, South African Airways is now able to offer its customers 852 destinations in 152 countries and more than 15,500 flights daily.

For more information on South African Airways, please call 800-722-9675 or visit http://www.flysaa.com.

About Global Traveler

A business travel publication that takes into account the sophisticated lifestyle interests of today's executive travelers, Global Traveler is the publication of choice among seasoned business travelers. Circulated nationally, Global Traveler is the only ABC-audited American magazine for the international business traveler, with ABC paid circulation of 60,055. The magazine has increased its frequency to12 issues per year, effective with the January 2007 issue.

###