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SA traces Airlink passengers after cruise-linked hantavirus case
Passengers who travelled on Airlink flight 4Z132 from St Helena to Johannesburg on 25 April 2026 are being traced after a hantavirus case linked to a wider international cruise ship outbreak prompted a coordinated public health response.
Image source: Gallo/Getty
Airlink said it was notified by South African health authorities after a passenger who had been on the flight later passed away following arrival in Johannesburg.
The airline said it was unaware of any illness at the time of travel and has since provided passenger details and seating allocations to assist with contact tracing.
The passenger’s condition deteriorated during the flight before she died in a Johannesburg emergency department on 26 April, according to reports by IOL.
As reported by CapeTown ETC, laboratory testing by South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases has since confirmed hantavirus infection, with sequencing and genomic analysis underway to determine the strain involved.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said the case forms part of a wider cruise-linked outbreak involving 147 passengers and crew, with confirmed and suspected infections reported across multiple countries.
The organisation said investigations are continuing to determine possible exposure pathways linked to the cruise itinerary, which included Antarctica, South Georgia, St Helena and Ascension Island.
WHO has assessed the overall public health risk as low while international monitoring and contact tracing continue.
The airline added that its aircraft are equipped with HEPA filtration systems that continuously circulate and clean cabin air during flight operations, in line with international aviation safety standards.
Cruise-linked outbreak
The case is linked to an international outbreak under investigation involving a cruise vessel that travelled through remote regions in the South Atlantic and Antarctica.
Health authorities across multiple countries are working through WHO coordination channels as investigations continue into how passengers may have been exposed.
Outbreak background
Hantavirus is a rare viral disease primarily associated with exposure to infected rodent urine, saliva or droppings.
Some strains have previously shown limited human-to-human transmission.
