The Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has assured that East London, George and Kimberley airports are fully ready to resume operations. On Thursday Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula announced that the three regional airports located in the Eastern Cape, Western Cape and Northern Cape provinces respectively, would reopen for business travel on July 21.

ACSA spokesperson Senzeni Ndebele pointed out that reopening these airports was crucial in reviving the local economies that they served. However, she warned potential passengers to check with airlines for available flights.

“Our experience of the past several weeks is that airlines will not necessarily commence with flights on the first day that airports are officially open again,” she cautioned. “Business passengers needing to travel to and from these centres should monitor the airline websites for flight availability.”

All necessary health protocols and processes had been put into place, and the necessary staff training carried out, by ACSA. The three provincial governments had also provided the necessary health screening resources for the airports.

“These resources are an essential required element of the health protocols and procedures at airports,” she highlighted. “Other airports that opened earlier already had Port Health resources in place by virtue of their international status. We are therefore most appreciative of the efforts of the three provincial governments in identifying and allocating qualified people who can perform the screening role which is a critical aspect of ensuring that air travel is safe. The support of the provincial governments is all the more appreciated at a time such as this when healthcare resources across the country are stretched.”

She stressed that passengers were responsible for making sure that their business travel documentation was in order before they booked their flights. Also, they had to complete the health screening questionnaire, available online on the websites of both ACSA and the airlines.

“We have also noticed at other airports that passengers are not completing the required health screening questionnaire before arriving at the airport,” affirmed Ndebele. “This causes congestion at terminal access points, so we appeal to passengers to ensure that the form is completed before getting to the airport.”