It’s a hard blow for British Airways in South Africa, one of its largest markets in the world. And in any case THE most important on the African continent.
The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) in fact suspended the flights of the domestic company Comair indefinitely on Sunday March 13. For safety reasons. The injunction was given on Saturday March 12. But what seemed like a 24-hour immobilization will take longer.
The South African civil aviation authority justifies this suspension on a multiplication of incidents in recent weeks at Comair which points to a lack of maintenance and safety rules. SACAA has thus confirmed that the suspension will continue until its concerns have been adequately addressed by the company.
Regarding all domestic and regional flights of the company as well as its low-cost subsidiary Kulula.com. According to Comair CEO Glenn Orsmond, “This is a huge blow to our customers, our employees and the traveling public, as it effectively eliminates 40% of market capacity. The implications for the aviation industry and the country are significant if the suspension continues. » In 2019, Comair and its subsidiary Kulula had transported six million passengers.
British Airways embarrassed
There is also the problem of British Airways. The South African carrier has been operating since 1996 as a franchise for the British company. Comair indeed provides flights in correspondence with the flights of BA in Johannesburg. These are essentially domestic connections – in particular from Johannesburg to Cape Town, Durban or Port Elizabeth. But there are also many regional destinations departing from the South African economic metropolis. As for example to Mauritius or Harare (Zimbabwe) and Windhoek (Namibia).
The suspension means that the BA passengers will have to find alternatives to get to Comair stops. However, the latter is continuing its steps with the SACAA in order to obtain the lifting of the suspension. But without being able to communicate when a quick return to normal is expected.
