South African Airways (SAA) CEO, Vuyani Jarana, said yesterday that the airline was taking urgent steps to address issues raised by the Auditor-General’s (AG) 2016/17 audit report, released last week.
He also noted that SAA’s board remained optimistic about the airline’s future despite incurring a R5.569 billion net loss in the 2016/17 financial year, a 277% increase on the losses incurred in the previous financial year.
“The AG has given us a comprehensive diagnosis into key areas of our business and this has provided deep insights which will contribute to a fit for purpose group of businesses,” said Jarana.
He pointed out that SAA had developed and approved a five-year turnaround plan with an immediate focus on liquidity management, balance sheet restructuring, cost management and revenue optimisation which was intended to stem losses and drive profitability.
Additionally, Jarana stated that steps had already been taken to improve the airline - such as the strengthening of the board to improve governance, implementation of network optimisation on domestic, regional and international routes to improve yields, and the R10-billion capital injection from National Treasury.
“We can assure our suppliers, creditors, customers, trade partners and the rest of our stakeholders that the shareholder, the board and management are doing everything practically possible to address SAA’s financial status and to transform the airline’s financial, commercial and strategic position,” he said.
