It now seems that Qantas has applied for its code share agreement with South African Airways between Sydney and Johannesburg. The airline wants this agreement to be extended for another two years.

Qantas group executive, David Epstein, said that Qantas believes that the continuation of the code share arrangement provides an efficient use of capacity that enhances the viability of the carrier in the face of increasing competition. This agreement can help to maximize public benefits.

He went on to say that the current code share agreement between the two airlines has delivered a wide range of benefits, including enhanced frequency and schedule choices between Australia and South Africa. There have also been a lot of promotions from both Sydney and Berth by South African Airways.

In Qantas’ application to the International Air Service Commission, also called the IASC, the airline admitted that its sales during the 2010 FIFA World Cup have been kind of disappointing and not on par with what they were expecting.

The airline said that Qantas had hoped the South African route would gain a one-off short-term demand injection. However, the level of booking that was received over this time span was very disappointing. The Soccer World Cup 2010 has had a weaker than expected impact on the tourism to South Africa.

The chief executive of Qantas also reported that the airlines’ market share to Johannesburg declined to 39.1 percent in April. South African Airways’ market share actually decreased to 27.5 percent. Epstein also confirmed his plans to remove the QF first class cabins on Boeing 747s flying to South Africa effective from late 2011 due to lack of demand.