The SA Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has issued a statement concerning today’s grounding of both kulula.com and BA Comair.
This morning, Saturday March 12, all BA Comair and kulula flights were thought to have been cancelled, but they had in fact been grounded by the CAA.
BA Comair issued a statement expressing regret and saying both airlines, BA Comair and kulula were affected.
“Our Executive Team are engaging with the CAA on an urgent basis. Comair believe there is no justification for the suspension. All passengers booked for Saturday March 12, 2022, are advised not to travel to the airport, or to try and book alternate flights. Comair deeply regrets the inconvenience caused and we are doing our utmost to restore our operations. All updates will be posted on Social Media channels as they become available,” said the airline’s statement.
Later in in the day the CAA issued a statement saying it had suspended the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) of Comair (Pty) Ltd, with its subsidiary kulula.com and British Airways.
“This decision was reached following an investigation into the recent spate of safety incidents at the Operator. This is a precautionary suspension for a period of 24 hours, within which the Operator must demonstrate to the Regulator that the risk and safety management systems are effective in managing potential hazards.
“Just in the past month, Comair operations experienced occurrences ranging from engine failures, engine malfunction and landing gear malfunctions, amongst others. In the interest of safety, the CAA visited the operator to investigate and determine if Comair was in compliance with applicable Civil Aviation Regulations. The inspection also aimed to review Comair’s quality control management system and safety management systems to establish compliance related to reporting, analysis and follow-up on occurrences, and corrective action plans to prevent recurrence.
“The outcome of the investigations yielded three level 1 findings, and one level 2 finding. In terms of the oversight philosophy of the Regulator, a level 1 finding, which poses an immediate risk, must be closed immediately and a level 2 finding must be closed within seven days.
“Failure of the Operator to produce satisfactory evidence to the Regulator, led to the decision to impose a precautionary suspension of the operations in order to give the Operator an opportunity to demonstrate that their systems are able to prevent and avert safety hazards.
“The Operator has until tomorrow morning, Sunday, 13 March 2022, to meet the requirements from the Regulator, failing which the approval will be suspended indefinitely, pending the satisfactory closing of the findings. The mandate of the SACAA is to regulate and enforce civil aviation safety and security compliance. This is a responsibility that the Regulator takes seriously and will execute diligently and without hesitation.”
