Airlink announced the cancellation of January 7 flights to Nampula in Mozambique following a claim for damages instituted by the province’s court. The instituting of the claim was accompanied by a court application to have Airlink’s aircraft seized pending the outcome.
The claim was filed with the Judicial Court in the province of Nampula by two Mozambican passengers who were offloaded from an Airlink flight in Johannesburg due to unruly and threatening behaviour.
“As the safety and well-being of its passengers, crew and aircraft come before any other operational consideration, Airlink has a strict zero-tolerance policy with regards to unruly behaviour onboard its aircraft. Any interference, threats or belligerence towards our crew, or disruption to the crew’s primary task of providing passenger safety, puts the lives of all on board at risk,” said Airlink CEO and managing director, Rodger Foster.
According to a statement by Airlink, the situation that led to the passengers’ offloading was handled in accordance with South Africa’s civil aviation regulations and was reported to the relevant authorities.
On December 28, the institution of the claim was accompanied by an interim court order to seize at least three Airlink aircraft in Mozambique, pending a hearing scheduled for mid-January. On the same day, Mozambique court officials attempted to seize an Airlink aircraft at Nampula Airport but were unsuccessful.
The carrier has appointed legal counsel in Mozambique to protect its rights under Mozambican law and stop the Court Order’s execution on the basis that the seizure of any aircraft operated by Airlink would be unlawful due to jurisdictional issues.
According to Airlink’s statement, Mozambican courts do not have the jurisdiction to seize or arrest foreign-registered aircraft as security for civil claims and, furthermore, do not have the jurisdiction to consider the claim as the incident occurred in South Africa.
“Given the threat and potential for the actual seizure of Airlink aircraft, we have suspended all operations to and from Nampula while the matter is dealt with through legal and diplomatic channels. We realise this has harmful consequences for trade, tourism and both business and leisure travel between the affected markets, but no airline can be expected to continue providing a service under such conditions,” said Foster.
Affected passengers will be given a full refund or be re-routed via Maputo, Beira or Vilanculos while Airlink continues to monitor the situation.
Airlink provides about 70% of scheduled commercial air travel between South Africa and Mozambique.
