With the decline in SAA and the shrinking of job opportunities young pilots are looking abroad to get a career going. There has been an enormous upturn in interest in how to convert a South African licence to a European one. N The Return of the Pink Panther, Inspector ClouseauRead More →
In the first week of January a Bombardier Global 6500 corporate jet operated by the manufacturer touched down at Lanseria International Airport. Believed to be on a customer demonstration flight, it departed again the following day heading to South America. This low-key visit is the first to South Africa byRead More →
Thanks to the steadily increasing demand for Lanseria from the scheduled airlines, Lanseria International Airport is still powering upwards on an ambitious growth trajectory. This despite the general aviation market being under much pressure. In contrast to the dysfunctional Wonderboom Airport, which has been run into the ground by theRead More →
Every year in September an emotional ceremony is held at the Katyn Monument in the James and Ethel Gray Park in Johannesburg to commemorate the anniversary of the historic South African Airforce relief flights over Warsaw. 2019 was the 75th Anniversary of this massive air transport effort. The annual ceremonyRead More →
“The rise of eCommerce is resulting in shifting patterns of land use. In particular, there is an increased demand for light distribution warehousing which Rand Airport’s new development is ideally suited to provide.” This shift in consumer and buying behaviour is driving the transformation of land-usage around the world andRead More →
The December holiday season in South Africa can be a most merry time, full of braais, cooling off around the pool and slow, special moments with family. For me the December break is also a great opportunity for extra flying. Not only is the security industry at its busiest, keepingRead More →
With the crash of a SAAF C-130BZ Hercules in Goma in early January, South Africa’s search and rescue mission capability is also woefully inadequate, particularly since the retirement of the SAAF 35 Squadron C-47TP turbine Dakota ‘Dakeltons’. Meanwhile across the south Atlantic, the industrious Brazilians got on with building theRead More →
Dassie Persaud-van der Westhuizen thought she wanted to be an architect – that is, until she discovered flying. She graduated as an architect from the University of Pretoria – and also made time to be the Rag Queen, before learning to fly at Wonderboom’s Loutzavia. She took a job asRead More →
China has been a latecomer to African aviation. Ethiopian Airlines started flying to China in November 1973 but there were precious few other air links between Africa and China for 30 years. Imperialistically speaking, African aviation has been a bit of a mixed bag. The involvement of former colonial powersRead More →
In his opening Address to this year’s Airline Association of Southern Africa (AASA) conference AASA CEO Chris Zweigenthal addressed the key question: “What’s stopping us? What’s not?” This is an edited version of his address presented in a question and answer format. HOW IS THE AIRLINE INDUSTRY DOING? The InternationalRead More →
