More than 10 unsolicited approaches expressing interest in South African Airways have been received from potential investors and partners. The South African government’s department of public enterprises states that the approaches concern SAA and its subsidiaries Mango Airlines, SAA Technical, and catering arm Air Chefs. “We have been busy assessing the interests from several unsolicited local and international strategic equity partners,” the department says. SAA underwent a prolonged business rescue program which resulted in a strategic plan for the company being approved by creditors in mid-July. The department claims it has been working “around the clock” to finalise the rescue process after stating, earlier in August, that all the conditions for implementation had been met. It says it believes investments in the airline and its subsidiaries will “help support key economic sectors, including tourism” and “solidify” the country as a gateway to international markets. SAA is being overhauled in four phases, it adds. Some 1,000 personnel will be retained for the restructured company, with another 1,000 placed on a social plan for integration as the airline expands. The remaining staff will be granted a voluntary severance package. A smaller board – with members including a chief risk officer, chief operating officer, and chief information officer – is being appointed. The process of raising funds and investment in the new carrier will be assisted by a transaction adviser, which the government has already identified. This adviser will also assess the unsolicited expressions of interest from private sector investors and partners. The department says it had received more than 10 such unsolicited approaches by the beginning of this month. Creation of a revamped SAA, the fourth phase, will result in an airline in which the department will maintain “a certain level of presence in the ownership”, it says. Operating a modern fleet with various density options, it adds, the carrier will have a network structure based on the “right routes, at the right times, and at competitive prices” – one which ensures high aircraft utilisation and connectivity through hubs.

Source: Cirium

British Airways staff represented by the Unite union have "overwhelmingly" called for strike action over the airline's plans for job losses and changes to employment terms. At a gathering of over 1000 BA staff held near London Heathrow on 20 August, workers urged the Unite union to launch legal and industrial action against the airline. BA is making several thousand staff redundant and seeking to change the pay and conditions of other employees in response to the coronavirus crisis. The union argues that BA crews, ground staff and other workers face losing their jobs and up to 43% of their salaries. It also claims that some workers set to retain their positions could be placed on zero-hour-type contracts “that give them no stability or security”. "British Airways is reaping what it has sowed. It's systematic, brutal and needless attacks on its workforce will see it inevitably faced with strikes in the autumn along with the persistent threat of disruption through widespread legal action," says Unite assistant general secretary Howard Beckett. "This workforce was absolutely clear today; this fight will go all the way and it will last until BA stops behaving like an abusive Victorian mill owner." BA refutes that it uses zero-hour contracts and says it has received no notification of any ballot for industrial action. It highlights that it has reached an agreement in principal on restructuring with the Unite and GMB unions for its engineering and customer-facing Heathrow ground staff, as well as with the pilot’s union BALPA. The airline says the gathering appears to relate to 'below the wing' employees who work in airside roles in the ramp area and baggage handling. "We have to adapt to survive, so we will continue with the proper, lawful consultative process and we will keep inviting union representatives to discuss our proposals to the serious challenges we face. It is not too late to find solutions – as we have done with BALPA – and to protect jobs," BA comments. The carrier is currently operating less than a fifth of its regular flying schedule and is burning through more than £20 million ($26mn) per day.

Source: Cirium

Flight recorders from the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 shot down over Tehran captured 19 seconds of information after the first missile strike, and revealed discussions in the cockpit on the state of the stricken aircraft. Both the cockpit-voice and flight-data recorder were cut off after 19s and did not register the second missile strike about 6s later. Newly-appointed Civil Aviation Organisation chief Touraj Dehghani Zanganeh states that, until 06:14:56 local time on 8 January, both recorders indicated no unusual flight parameters and the aircraft was in normal condition. The aircraft had been operating flight PS752 to Kiev at a time when Iranian air defences were on high alert. Iranian investigators have already indicated that an alignment error with a ground-based surveillance system incorrectly suggested the aircraft was flying an unexpected track and was interpreted as hostile. Zanganeh says three pilots, including an instructor, were in the cockpit at the time. All three were aware of the abnormal situation and were busy dealing with the control and navigation of the aircraft after the first strike, with the cockpit-voice recording including remarks from the instructor about both engines being active. No information has been disclosed as to which part of the airframe bore the effects of the detonation. Two missiles had been fired at the aircraft, some 30s apart, but the flight recorders’ simultaneous cut-off – which the inquiry attributes to damage from the first missile – meant the second impact could not be assessed. “No analysis of the performance and effects of the second missile can be obtained from the aircraft’s [recorders] black boxes,” says the Civil Aviation Organisation. The inquiry had previously indicated that the second missile might have missed the aircraft, and that the first impact had been sufficient to bring the 737 down. Zanganeh says the recorder reading took place in the presence of representatives from Ukraine, the USA, France, Canada, the UK and Sweden, as well as a member of ICAO.

Source: Cirium