• A problem with plane refueling at OR Tambo International this week affected nearly 50 000 passengers during the busiest period of the country’s busiest airport.
• The issues have been sorted for now but the government is getting involved to ensure it doesn’t happen again.
• Concerns around South Africa’s Air Traffic Navigation Services have been mounting since August.

Ahead of the year-end peak season for domestic and international air travel in South Africa, a number of operational challenges have thrown the country’s airports in disarray. The latest was a glitch of the refuelling system at OR Tambo International, the busiest airport in the country, that delayed hundreds of flights this week.

“Due to refuelling challenges at OR Tambo International Airport, airlines are currently unable to refuel aircraft as normal. As a result, some flights may experience delays,” read a statement from Airports Company South Africa (ACSA).

ACSA’s calm statement belies the nightmarish situation that played out this week as passengers scrambled across the airport in their hundreds as their flight plans changed on the dime.

The entity said on 10th December that operations had returned to normal as the refuelling problem has been resolved. It also “unreservedly apologised” to the stakeholders and members of the public for the situation.

“This disruption directly impacted approximately 177 flights and 22 073 passengers between 09h05 and 13h01 when flights resumed. The knock-on effect of this four-hour delay impacted a further number of flights and passengers, over the 13h00 to 23h00pm period when the backlog was cleared,” it shared via X.

Nearly 50 000 passengers were affected by the problem over the course of four days reportedly due to a “drive shaft that sheared (or shattered)” in the system that pumped fuel into aircraft.

“This prevented the pumping of jet fuel from storage tanks to the aprons, which enables the re-fuelling of aircraft. The repair work was conducted in compliance with rigorous safety procedures,” ACSA explained, adding that the delay was mostly due to this procedure.

“This encompasses depressurisation, drainage of fuel, purging the system of hydrocarbons and associated gasses and the implementation of specialised rigging to ensure the safe completion of work.”

Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille said she would be meeting with Transport Minister Barbara Creecy to ensure that something like this would not happen again, especially during the peak holiday season.

“Reliable airport operations are essential not only for the smooth movement of passengers but also for safeguarding South Africa’s reputation as a premier tourist destination. In light of this, I will be engaging with the Minister of Transport to discuss these matters further to ensure no repeats of these incidents,” she said in a statement.

“The tourism sector plays a vital role in driving economic growth and creating jobs. As such, ensuring the seamless operation of key infrastructure like OR Tambo is a shared priority.”

Minister Creecy has been engaging various stakeholders of South Africa’s airport, flight and transport industry since August as a number of challenges have affected the industry in the last few months of the year.

That month the Department of Transport ordered the South African Air Traffic Navigation Services (ATNS) to sort out the country’s ongoing instrument flight approach issues.

Concerns mounted that the country’s international and domestic airports would not have procedures in place to conduct these landings before the busy end-year period.