EL and Mthatha airports poised for action

East London and Mthatha airports remain closed for now but are ready to spring into action when transport minister Fikile Mbalula gives the go-ahead.

In the Eastern Cape, Port Elizabeth International Airport has been given the green light for business travel and is expected to resume flights shortly.

Airport Company of SA (Acsa) spokesperson Senzeni Ndebele said the company was waiting on the national command council decision to open the East London Airport.

“We’ll be ready to reopen our remaining airports as soon as that decision is announced. The necessary signage, floor markers, sanitisers and so on have already been delivered. Staff are being trained in the new procedures,” Ndebele said.

Ndebele said masks are compulsory and avoiding personto-person contact was key.

“Achieving this requires self check-in and scanning your own boarding pass at security and at the departure gate. We also encourage passengers to put items on their person that may trigger the scanner alarm into carry-on luggage or in a clear plastic bag that can be put onto the scanner belt,” she said.

Ndebele said passengers are allowed 100ml of gel or liquid sanitiser in hand luggage.

Provincial transport spokesperson Khuselwa Rantjie said Mthatha Airport is scheduled to open as part of phase 3 of opening domestic air travel.

“We submitted a public health plan to the SA Civil Aviation Authority for approval. The plan relates to things like how we will be screening passengers, sanitising our building and working out social distancing in waiting rooms,” Rantjie said.

Rantjie said the plan had been approved this week and they were waiting on a compliance inspection by the SACAA. She added that personal protective equipment had been distributed to all airport staff.

Travellers are requested to check in at least two hours before departure to give time to follow all health regulations.

Border-Kei Chamber of Business (BKCOB) executive director Les Holbrook said it was difficult to understand the transport national command council’s choice of airports.

“If it was necessary to phase in the respective destinations, first consideration should be for the distance between destinations. Our argument is that all airports should be allowed to determine their own readiness,” he said.

Safety came first but “not on the end of a rope basis”, he added. “It cannot be a case that any of the other destinations are more important. We’re all business people.”

A driver for e-hailing company Bolt, Mandilakhe Xekilali, said he had taken a knock financially because the airport was a strong business base.

“When you have an airport trip, it will cover you over R100. Most trips that keep me busy are about R54. I could at least cover car instalments, groceries and fuel when the airport was open.”

Xekilali said drivers could easily get three or four trips to the airport a day.

One of the most affected sectors is tourism, with leisure travel still closed.

The Tourism Business Council of SA (TBCSA) made an urgent call on Tuesday for the government to reopen domestic interprovincial leisure travel to reduce the number of retrenchments.

Up to 600,000 jobs may be lost if the sector remains closed, with knock-on effects in other sectors. About 49,000 small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) are affected.

The necessary signage, floor markers and sanitisers have already been delivered. Staff are being trained in the new procedures