- The SACAA has denied allegations that it provided "special treatment" to SAA after a take-off incident in Brussels was reported several weeks after it happened.
- An SAA flight carrying Covid-19 vaccines from Brussels had the incident on 24 February, but it was not reported within the stipulated time of 24 hours.
- SACAA says it is not aware of any investigation carried out in Brussels.
The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) has denied allegations that it provided South African Airways (SAA) with "special treatment" following a take-off incident reported to the regulators three weeks after it occurred.
It is alleged that an SAA flight carrying Covid-19 vaccines from Brussels ran into difficulty during take-off on 24 February, and that the incident was not reported within the stipulated time of 24 hours.
Civil Aviation is now investigating the take-off delay and safety incident involving the SAA flight, which collected the second consignment of Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccines from Brussels in late February.
According to Business Maverick, the airline's crew allegedly miscalculated the take-off weight and the plane was in danger of stalling due to low airspeed, but it was averted when the aircraft's safety system took over.
"The said incident report was reported to the South African Civil Aviation Authority and the Accident and Incident Investigation Division (AIID) on the evening of 17 March 2021," SACAA spokesperson Kabelo Ledwaba confirmed.
According to Ledwaba, regulations stipulate that all aviation accidents must be reported within 24 hours, serious incidents within 48 hours, and incidents within 72 hours.
"The South African Civil Aviation Authority wishes to firmly dismiss the peddled notion that seeks to suggest that the Regulator intends to provide ongoing exemptions and provide SAA with, '... special treatment that goes against the set standards and regulated prescripts'," said Ledwaba.
Both Business Maverick and Business Day reported that the flight was initially barred from taking off.
Dismissing allegations that the flight was barred from take-off, a member of SACAA, who asked not to be named, told News24 that the flight was cleared to fly.
"The Brussels flight was a once-off exemption, and was granted on the strength of its risk mitigation measures, which are aligned to South African civil aviation regulations and acceptable global standard."
Ledwaba said all operators are expected to comply with the same set of civil aviation regulations, which had ensured the country's safety record in terms of commercial and airline operations remained untainted for more than 30 years.
SACAA said it is not aware of any investigation carried out in Brussels.
"It is important to note that incidents that happen outside of the South African jurisdiction are handled by the respective countries where the incident has taken place," added Ledwaba.
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