National flag carrier South African Airways (SAA) hopes to reinstate flights between Johannesburg and Blantyre (Malawi) on this coming Saturday (February 2). The route has been suspended since January 18 due to Blantyre’s Chileka International Airport having being found to have serious safety non-compliance by an annual audit by the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA).
SAA has been working with Malawian authorities to ensure that the airport is restored to full safety compliance so that the airline can resume its services. The local authorities concerned include the Malawian Ministry of Transport and the Blantyre municipality. Last Thursday, the airline told the SACAA that the required remedial actions had been carried out.
“We now await SACAA inspection of the airport and demonstration to them that we have successfully implemented required interventions as per our corrective action plan,” reported SAA spokesperson Tlali Tlali. “Until [the] measures [that] are put in place meet the satisfaction of SACAA, our operations between Johannesburg and Blantyre will remain suspended.”
The SACAA is expected to inspect Chileka on Wednesday January 30.”[W]e are optimistic that the regulator will be satisfied with the measures implemented,” he said. “We would like to apologise to our passengers and customers for the inconvenience caused and trust that they will appreciate that the decisions were taken in the interests of safety for all.”
Reportedly, the serious failings at the airport included a lack of a reliable fire engine and ambulance (due to lack of maintenance) and an inadequate and vandalised perimeter fence. Normally, SAA operates three times a week between Johannesburg and Blantyre, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.