Johannesburg, Dec 8 (NationPress) Pilots from South African Airways (SAA) have decided to suspend their strike following a successful negotiation that resulted in a salary increase, according to the airline.

The strike, which began on Thursday, was initiated due to a failure in salary negotiations with the airline, leading to the cancellation of nearly half of the airline's flights on that day, as reported by Xinhua news agency.

The SAA announced that the strike was called off on Saturday morning after the pilots reached an agreement with the South African Airways Pilots Association (SAAPA).

As part of the resolution, the airline offered an additional salary increase of one percent, culminating in a total salary increment of 9.47 percent for the pilots.

John Lamola, the chief executive officer of SAA, stated, "As a part of the agreement that resolved the deadlock in wage discussions, we will continue to engage in a continuous enterprise improvement program over the next eight weeks. We are dedicated to implementing work-life concessions that should enhance the productivity of our world-renowned pilots."

By Saturday noon, over 100 pilots had resumed their duties, and SAA is anticipated to return to a full flight schedule by Sunday.