Although South Africas Air Traffic Navigation Services (ATNS) has emphasised the need for the suspension of instrument approaches to certain airports to ensure safety in South African skies, aviation experts say that it is poor planning and execution that have disrupted air services across the country, at the George, Kimberley, Mthatha, Polokwane and Richards Bay airports.
The key priority for ATNS is keeping the skies and our passengers safe, which therefore informed our decision in terms of our safety management system that procedures that do not meet the requirement should be suspended unless such non-compliances are mitigated, ATNS COO, Josia Manyakoana , said in a media update.
According to the release, the maintenance procedures are based on both local and international standards and local procedures are currently under review to ensure they align with global advancements in aviation technology and safety requirements.
But for some members of the aviation community, that explanation is not enough.
Nobody is disputing that safety compliance reviews have to be conducted on a regular basis. The issue here is that, as a result of poor planning and poor execution, it was not done in time, and this is now causing disruptions to air services, explained Linden Birns , MD of Plane Talking.
