Privatised SAA could insist on handling all domestic traffic
THE PROSPECT is alarming to say the least. Could the imminent privatisation of SAA ring the death knell for international carriers outbound from Cape Town for Europe, their holds loaded with crackle-fresh perishable goods?
That, says TRT Shipping airfreight director Nathan Pillay, is a very real possibility.
The 'new' SAA may not look too favourably upon the current arrangement in which South Africa remains unique by allowing foreign airlines to land at two airports. They may well wish to handle all the domestic business, and I can see that happening.
Our reaction, now that we are in the off-season, is one of wait and see, but we are obviously very concerned.
Last month Air France withdrew its Cape Town sector flights, citing unsatisfactory passenger yields from the Mother City to Paris.
Swissair and Lufthansa have put on hold the decision on whether or not to follow suit pending the outcome of SAA's privatisation moves, while certain other carriers, KLM and Austrian Airlines included, have indicated they have no intention of withdrawing from the Cape Town sector.
Pillay's assessment of the situation is endorsed by WilmŽ Rossouw, airfreight export manager for Berry and Donaldson, who believes the demise of foreign airlines on the Cape Town sector will create even more serious bottlenecks at Johannesburg International Airport than in the past.
While Air France was still active on the Cape Town sector with three Paris-bound flights a week, the city's Big Four airfreight companies were using the carrier for at least 480 tons of perishable cargo - mainly fish and flowers - a month.
Berry and Donaldson has resorted to trucking all its fish line perishables to Johannesburg, which Rossouw says has several advantages over aircraft that will eventually have to tranship. There's less 'abuse' of the product through handling, constant chilling at all times and a cost-saving of at least 50%.
Pillay avers that transhipment of perishable cargo in Johannesburg entails a delay of at least 12 hours which leaves the product wide open to temperature abuse. Product abuse claims by perishable producers against international carriers could easily top R4-million per annum across the board.
He believes that should SAA decide to 'go it alone' by taking over the entire domestic schedule structure, sound contingency measures will obviously have to be in place, including the introduction of dedicated freighters on a fixed schedule.
The airline currently only has one dedicated domestic Boeing 737, a dedicated Airbus 310 for international flights and a dedicated Boeing 747 conveying 200 tons of fish cargo a week out of South Africa.
Another problem which has yet to be resolved is the inability of the Department of Sea Fisheries to come up with fishing quotas for export of longline hake to Spain.
The decision is already three months overdue, no fish has been caught, boats are idle in harbour and the country is losing R1-million in foreign exchange due to the delay, says Pillay.
By Ray Smuts
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