Operations at O.R. Tambo International Airport are back to normal after travellers experienced delays with domestic departures, as well as international departures.
Workers sing and dance as a South African Airways (SAA) airplane prepares to take off after a year-long hiatus triggered by the national airline running out of funds, at O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, South Africa, September 23, 2021. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko
“[The airport] is open to both travellers and non-travellers. Thank you for entrusting us with your travel plans, and we apologise once again for any inconvenience caused,” Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) said on Thursday.
Media Release Final Update on the Main Fuel Valve pic.twitter.com/jLGz3ZgcbA
— Airports Company SA (@Airports_ZA) December 28, 2022
On Wednesday, the airport was experiencing challenges with the refuelling of aircraft.
“The technical issue was due to the main supply valve supplying fuel to the Aprons not opening, thus causing rotational delays to domestic and international departures. As a contingency, a tanker was used to refuel aircraft.
“The airport management centre immediately sent out communication to all affected airport stakeholders, airlines and passengers notifying them of the challenges,” ACSA said.
As a result, 41 flights were impacted, with 32 of them being domestic, eight international and one regional flight.
“Additional staff members were deployed to assist passengers with queries. Terminal announcements on the public address systems are continuing to reassure affected passengers. O.R. Tambo International Airport would like to apologise to all passengers and their loved ones for the inconvenience,” ACSA said.
When Minister of Tourism, Lindiwe Sisulu, was made aware of the delays with flights, she engaged the Airlines Association of Southern Africa (AASA) and ACSA.
“On behalf of government, I wish to apologise profusely to all affected travellers for the inconvenience experienced. I have been assured that systems are now in place to resolve the delays,” Sisulu said. – SAnews
Update on the situation at O.R. Tambo International Airport.
Delayed flights from the morning were cleared throughout the day. We do not have fuel challenges and the technical fault at the storage facility was addressed in the morning and flights were able to resume. https://t.co/dcWl9IIgtE pic.twitter.com/4a8Hn6z7W1
— Cde Fikile Mbalula | ANC SG (@MbalulaFikile) December 28, 2022
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