South African Airways (SAA) has become the first airline in Africa to join Star Alliance, the biggest global airline group, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported on Sunday.

From Monday, frequent SAA users will be eligible to redeem and earn flier mile points for flights on any of the Alliance's international airlines.

Several chief executives of international airlines paid a visit to South African President Thabo Mbeki at the presidential guest house in Pretoria on Sunday ahead of Monday's launch.

The national broadcaster called the group "influential players" in the aviation industry and said they represented 17 of the leading airlines, including Lufthansa, Thai Airways and Swiss.

"Star Alliance opens up the world to SAA customers with 15,000 daily flights to over 852 destinations in over 140 countries. This really is an opportunity for SAA to open up the world to Africa," SAA spokeswoman Jacqui O'Sullivan was quoted as saying.

South African Airways serves more than 700 destinations at 34 cities in 26 countries on six continents, and carries more than 6. 5 million passengers each year, said the company's website.

SAA's joining into the Star Alliance, which processes 425 million passengers annually, was "a sign of confidence in the African airline industry," the SABC said.

However, the entire aviation industry of the continent has been marred by its poor safety records in past years.

Although Africa accounted for only 4.5 percent of global air traffic, 25 percent of all accidents in which aircraft were lost in 2004 occurred in Africa, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Only three airlines in Africa -- South African Airways, Kenya Airways and Egyptair -- have completed the IATA Operational Safety Audit, a thorough check on the state of their equipment and safety procedures.

The European Aviation Safety Agency announced late last month to ban more than 80 airlines from five African countries from flying to Europe because of their weak control and oversight capacity.

Source: Xinhua