The Foreign Operator's Permit (FOP) will now be included in the requirements for a flight to land in South Africa after the Air Traffic Navigation Services (ATNS) and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) realised the loophole, much to the embarrassment of the government, after an aircraft from Angola landed at Cape Town International Airport last week.
The landing of the aircraft chartered by Angolan airline, TAAG, which operates scheduled flights between Luanda and Johannesburg, exposed the vulnerability of South African skies to illicit cargo feared by analysts to range from minerals to money and drugs, among other things.
Under pressure from parliamentarians in the National Assembly’s transport committee yesterday, ATNS CEO Nozipho Mdawe said the entity had previously not required the Foreign Operator's Permit to clear a foreign flight to land but realised the gap with the Angola flight though everything else about it had been in order.
“We had the flight plan and other requirements as prerequisites before but together with the CAA we have identified the gap and we will see how to make the FOP part of the flight plan process. The FOP had not been required by us before but we will ensure that the gap is closed,” Mdawe said.
Deputy Minister for Transport Sindisiwe Chikunga told Parliament that the government was conducting investigations into the matter and that the South African Civil Aviation Authority (Sacaa) had been mandated to conclude enforcement processes against the airline involved and its personnel.
Sources said the likelihood was that the International Air Licensing Services Council would make its own determination and would see the aircraft’s pilots fined and the airline banned for five years at least from South African skies.
An aviation specialist ruled out corruption in the landing of the flight, but said the frequency of foreign aircraft dropping in without permits was cause for concern as it indicated a lack of communication between the ATNS and other agencies.
He said it deprived the country of revenue from permits and exposed it to illicit cargo.
“An aircraft can land if someone is sick or it has a technical emergency but as soon as they realised it was here to pick up passengers, it should have been instructed to leave immediately because there was no FOP. This has become a normal exercise where people drop in without permits. That is why the minister is angry because it is embarrassing, it makes us look like a banana republic,” he said.
The ATNS, through chairperson Simphiwe Thobela and Mdawe, emphasised the need for capital assistance from the government to upgrade some of its equipment, which had become obsolete because of advancing technology.
This included the management of drones, which Mdawe said had become a new challenge in the skies that threatened the integrity of operations.
The entity obtained a qualified audit opinion with no material misstatements as it reported revenue of R1 billion in the year to March, from R547 million at the height of Covid-19 curtailments.
The growth in revenue has been derived from increased activity in the domestic market.
The ATNS reported earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation of R217m and a loss of R378m.
Due to Covid constraints on revenue, the entity depleted its reserves from R1.6 billiion to R400m, prompting the chief financial officer to state that concerns over lack of capital expenditure, including infrastructure development, would require engagement with the government as the main shareholder.
BUSINESSS REPORT