Cape Town – The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has called on the South African Aviation Authority to “immediately suspend the operation licences for British Airways and Kulula until an intensive audit is done of all aircraft, pilots and safety regulations”.
EFF said this after a British Airways flight from Gqeberha to Cape Town Airport had trouble landing on Saturday.
According to eNCA, the flight landed safely on its second attempt.
The incident occurred just a few days after the lifting of a suspension of Comair-operated flights.
In a statement, the EFF demanded a “permanent grounding of all Comair-aligned aviation companies”, saying they were posing a “threat to the safety and security of passengers and the country”.
EFF Statement On British Airways And Comair Flights pic.twitter.com/XN6lsTceLh
— Economic Freedom Fighters (@EFFSouthAfrica) March 19, 2022
“The situation has reached a level where it now constitutes a security threat…
“This essentially means that this airline was allowed to resume its operations without adequate checks and compliance to technical requirements being met.
“The audit by the South African Civil Aviation Authority was rushed and this was, without a doubt due to undue pressure by commercial interests in the aviation sector to resume operations,” said the EFF.
According to Times Live, Comair spokesperson Stephen Forbes confirmed there was an issue with the landing gear on flight BA6324 during final approach on Saturday.
“We confirm that following a landing gear warning indication … on final approach … to Cape Town International Airport the pilot performed standard safety checks and once the correct reading was achieved, a normal landing occurred.
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“The safety of our personnel and customers is always our foremost priority.
“We apologise to customers for the resultant 15-minute delay,” the report quoted Comair spokesperson Stephen Forbes as saying.
Comair operates Kulula.com and British Airways flights in SA.
The South African regulator suspended Comair’s operations for five days on Sunday last week after an investigation uncovered issues posing “an immediate risk to safety and security”.
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Comair flights experienced a spate of issues over the past month, according to the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA), including engine trouble and landing gear malfunctions.
The carrier was asked to show it had complied with safety management regulations and was taking corrective action for the flights to resume.
After examining the evidence provided by Comair, the suspension was lifted with “immediate effect”, the SACAA said in a statement.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
Additional reporting by AFP
