The board of South African Airways (SAA) on Monday voiced its disappointment over a statement issued by the South African Airways Pilots’ Association (SAAPA) last week, calling for changes in the leadership of the airline.

SAAPA last week warned that its members would consider embarking on industrial action if its demands were not met. The association had, in August, demanded that SAA appoint a permanent CEO within 90 days, besides others.

Zukisa Ramasia is serving as interim CEO following the resignation of former CEO Vuyani Jarana in June.

The airline’s board on Monday pointed out that it was still negotiating with the association and said it would have preferred to see the process run its natural course before any statements were made by the parties.

However, given that SAAPA had raised a number of issues publicly, the board said the airline was facing a number of issues on many fronts, including revenue stimulation and network optimisation.

It added that an experienced executive had been appointed to this responsibility, from September.

Additionally, the board said that the airline had taken steps to bring in the required capacity to strengthen management; however, it stressed that appointment processes took time, as due process had to be followed.

Notwithstanding, a number of key appointments, including a chief commercial officer, the CEO of SAA Technical and the CEO of Mango, have been announced and more executive hires were in the pipeline, SAA said on Monday.

The airline further noted that management continued to engage with SAAPA, other unions and all employees regarding the progress being made and mechanisms being developed to address the many other challenges facing the airline.

In remaining cognisant of the need to turn SAA around urgently, SAA on Monday assured that the accelerated Long-term Turnaround Strategy (LTTS) implementation would speak to this. 

“We are committed to building a strong and resilient SAA in the spirit of cooperation and collaboration,” the airline said in its statement.

However, SAA said that “it is in no one’s interest to embark on industrial action” and added that it remained hopeful that everyone was committed to the philosophy and course of action set out.