SAA is past rescue effort

Bronwyn Nortje’s excellent article (Why nosediving SAA no longer merits costly emergency landing, October 12) should be obligatory reading for the finance and public enterprises ministers, the South African Airways (SAA) board and management, plus anyone else who proposes the “restructuring” of the airline.

Years ago, the carrier may have been a symbol of prestige for our country. In the present developed and competitive world that is certainly no longer the case.

Nortje’s article presents a clear and concise review of the market and its realities. It analyses the general difficulties of the struggling airline industry with costs rising faster than ticket prices. It presents the changed competitive environment, where SAA cannot compete against the large Middle Eastern and European carriers that have taken away its monopoly on Africa travel.

Poorly managed SAA is not in the league of those airlines able to keep pace with the stringent economic conditions that must be met annually. Lacking capital and size, it continues with the inefficient structure of a fleet that is no longer modelled to its routes and passenger-load factors.

The results of any Swot [strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats] analysis would be bleak — the weaknesses and threats far outweigh any strengths or opportunities. In the global corporate world, such an entity would have long ceased to exist. With privatisation no longer an option, its assets should be sold and SAA shut down.

Alan Mantle

Via e-mail