SAA chooses fat-free option

SOUTH AFRICAN Airways has appointed Joe Makobe to oversee the unbundling of the airline from the Transnet group, scheduled for completion by May 2006.
Makobe, a merchant banker who joined SAA as acting secretary last year, will report to SAA and Transnet chiefs Khaya Ngqula and Maria Ramos. While the airline will continue to be government-owned, it will ultimately report to the transport department rather than public enterprises.
This follows Ngqula’s announcement last week to ‘trim the fat’ by offering voluntary severance packages to 602 managers as he attempts to effect savings of R1.6bn to return the airline to profitability.