CEO of ACSA Mpumi Mpofu. Picture: Timothy Bernard African News Agency (ANA)
Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) CEO Mpumi Mpofu has said that the many failed airlines which operated in the country have left a void in the local market, with the remaining operating airlines struggling to meet local demand.
Talking about the liquidation of airlines such as Comair, SA Express and Kulula, Mpofu said that seat capacity from those airlines had not yet been restored, according to a report by EWN.
Mpofu said that this had also caused a spike in ticket prices.
"So when people book, they find the aircraft full. If we had had more, basically those places would have been taken up. I know a lot of people who took decisions not to fly because they were not sure whether capacity was going to be a constraint or not. So hopefully that will improve because leasing an aircraft is quite a complex process. It doesn't happen at a touch of a button but increasingly, the airlines we are working with are increasing that aircraft capacity on a month to month basis," Mpofu said.
Just last week, operations at OR Tambo International Airport (ORTIA) had been affected due to a fuel shortage.
ACSA said this was due to a technical fault experienced from the fuel storage facility to the main hydrant system that led to an impact on refuelling aircraft.
ACSA issued a statement confirming that there was a challenge with refuelling of aircraft last Wednesday.
“The technical issue was due to the main supply valve supplying fuel to the aprons not opening, thus causing rotational delays to domestic and international departures. As a contingency, a tanker was used to refuel aircraft,” said the ORTIA airport management.
The management said from the commencement of operations until 8.30am, when the problem was resolved, a total of 41 flights were impacted, 32 being domestic, eight international and one regional flight.
In December last year, Acsa assured air passengers that they will enjoy a seamless experience at its airports during the peak festive season, with scheduled flights taking off on time after overcoming jet fuel challenges.
This comes as passenger volumes have recorded an overall recovery of pre-Covid numbers of 70% for the year to date in South Africa, driven by domestic travel at 72% while international travel accounted for 66% by end of October.
Meanwhile, transport minister Fikile Mbalula said earlier this week that OR Tambo International airport experienced a successful holiday season which saw thousands of passengers using the airport.
“We are immensely proud, except for the glitch of the fuel supply fault that we encountered. We once again apologise profusely to holidaymakers,” Mbalula said.
Mbalula was speaking after an oversight visit to the airport on Monday to check on the work Airports Company of South Africa (Acsa) was doing to ensure seamless travel and assess their readiness for 2023.
He said he had received a detailed briefing from Acsa on the situation at the airport and the company was prepared to welcome people back into the country and province.
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