Pretoria - The Portfolio Committee on Transport says it is satisfied with the operations of the Airports Company South Africa (Acsa).
The chairperson of the committee, Dikeledi Magadzi, said the committee was particularly impressed with Acsa’s emphasis on safety at airports.
“The emphasis on safety is reassuring. All the improvements that Acsa is initiating are noteworthy and deserve to be supported. This is one entity that gets South Africa working and interacting with Africa and the world,” she said.
The committee visited Cape Town International Airport earlier in the day, where it was shown all the improvements that Acsa is introducing in areas of passenger safety, boarding, flights and airport communication, luggage and air traffic control.
However, it was brought to the attention of the committee that some security checks were a requirement of the Civil Aviation Authority and it was mainly a challenge during peak times, but this was being reviewed.
As a result of the spike in mall robberies, special measures, particularly around parking when picking up passengers, have been introduced.
Magadzi said the functionality of airports in the country was central to the economy.
“The inconveniences associated with being searched prior to boarding are a necessary inconvenience.
“Acsa could still improve on flight delays and processing international visitors. The committee is really pleased with the kind of work that is put into improving our airports.”
She said Acsa and South African Airways (SAA) were the face of Africa in the world and that their sustenance was paramount.
“Eventually Africa could rely on Africans without involving other continents,” she said. - SAnews.gov.za
