SA Express cleared to fly again after grounding chaos

FOLLOWING a weekend during which thousands of air travellers were left stranded, the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) last night cleared SA Express to resume flights.

The SACAA reinstated the airline’s air operator certificate (AOC), allowing it to resume operating its fleet of 26 aircraft.

On Saturday, the regulator suspended the airline’s AOC, citing its alleged failure to comply with applicable civil aviation regulations.

The state-owned airline was forced to cancel flights on Saturday and scrambled to accommodate its passengers on other carriers while it awaited a decision from the regulator.

The SACAA’s executive manager for aviation safety operations, Simon Segwabe, said the decision to lift the suspension was made after the airline submitted a detailed action plan containing new processes to enhance its systems.

Segwabe said the regulator had been engaging with SA Express since April 19 when deficiencies in its systems were first identified.

“We told them to submit a corrective action plan, then and again on April 22, giving them the deadline of April 29,” he said.

“However, their action plan was inadequate and we took the decision to suspend them. There have been subsequent engagements and the exchange of documentation.”

Segwabe said the airline’s latest submission properly addressed deLedwaba ficiencies identified by the SACAA.

Yesterday afternoon, SA Express chief executive Inati Ntshanga confirmed the airline had made arrangements to accommodate all passengers on other carriers.

SACAA spokesman Kabelo Ledwaba said: “While the suspension has been lifted, the SACAA will continue to monitor and oversee the full implementation of the SA Express corrective action plan.

“It will also intensify its oversight of the airline’s entire operation.”

said aviation safety and security were critical. Suspensions and withdrawals of licence-holders’ privileges were not an instant action or any form of reprisal by the regulator.

“Such a decision is usually preceded by comprehensive engagements and attempts by the regulator to highlight deficiencies and help licence-holders to comply with the prescribed standards and applicable regulations,” he said.

“Suspensions are therefore precautionary measures aimed at avoiding catastrophic incidents.”

Ntshanga apologised to passengers for “the aggravation‚ the trouble and the disruption we were responsible for” and said the airline thanked its passengers “for their support and understanding”.

“I assure them that the SA Express team and I will do everything in our power to make it up to them and to win back their confidence as South Africa’s best regional airline‚” Ntshanga said.

He said safety had been the airline’s top priority since it started operations in 1994 and it had had an impeccable safety record for the past 22 years.