Praise for SAA’s Mango admission

File picture: Simphiwe Mbokazi

File picture: Simphiwe Mbokazi

Published Jun 15, 2016

Share

Johannesburg - Low-cost airline, Skywise, has given credit to SAA’s Dudu Myeni for admitting that the national carrier had helped its subsidiary Mango through sub-leasing aircraft at discounted prices.

Read also: DA wants inquiry into airline collusion claims

Skyline co-chairpersons Tabassum Qadir and Javed Malik said yesterday that in 10 years of historical airline demises in South Africa, for the first time SAA had accepted that Mango Airlines had been subsidised all these years.

“Credit goes to the brave leadership of Dudu Myeni for revealing this information now. Finally, somebody had the courage to take a stand for doing what is right. Once again she has proved that leaders are driven by mission or principle, not popularity,” they said.

They added that Mango had never been a profitable airline in the context of its own performance. SAA’s confirmation that it had helped Mango came as the budget airline’s chief executive announced his resignation.

“It is never too late to make things right. One of which is withdrawing government ownership of 3 percent from a private airline like Airlink, which is causing the 100 percent government-owned SA Express to fail. Like Mango was subsidised at the cost of SAA, Airlink is being given the distribution network of SA Express.”

BUSINESS REPORT

Related Topics: