TAM is likely to ditch its plans to fly to South Africa in favour of a new route to Angola.

According to an interview with commercial vp, Paulo Castelo Branco, in Brazilian national paper O Globo, the airline had planned to launch its flights to South Africa last December but due to the economic crisis, the viability of the route was in question. “By joining Star Alliance in May our opportunities abroad have increased. We’re going to fly to Johannesburg codesharing with South African Airways by the end of the year.” The airline has assessed the viability of a route to Angola and will launch three weekly services between São Paulo and Luanda by December, according to the report.