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The refuelling problems at OR Tambo International Airport on Monday, which led to several flight delays and cancellations, were reportedly caused by a mechanical breakdown in the refuelling system.
This is according to Jabu Khambule, regional general manager at OR Tambo, who told Moneyweb in an interview that the issue had nothing to do with fuel supplies but with the failure of a “shaft in the valve” of the refuelling system.
He explains: “The shaft that connects to the valve actuator controls the opening and closure of the valve, and as a result of the breakdown, the valve got stuck on ‘close’.”
The result was that engineers had to disassemble the fuel system to remove the faulty shaft and then replace it with a spare component.
Second valve failure
OR Tambo had a similar problem on 28 December 2022 – also during peak season – when a fault with a valve caused delays in refuelling, which prompted the use of tankers to refuel aircraft, according to News24.
At the time, Acsa said “lessons were learned” and the company undertook to put measures in place to ensure it would not happen again.
The measures included installing a backup bypass line in the refuelling system, which has not yet been completed.
Aaron Munetsi, CEO of the Airlines Association of Southern Africa (Aasa), notes in a statement that the failure of the main valve in the refuelling system is cause for “grave concern”.
“We urge the Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) to expedite the installation of the backup bypass line that was promised as part of the fuel supply resilience plan after the previous main valve failure in December 2022.”
‘Different equipment’
Khambule told Moneyweb the breakdown two years ago was indeed also a valve failure, but this time around a different valve was affected.
“It’s not the same equipment, and it is also a different pipe that failed,” he clarified.
He told Moneyweb that work will continue through the night to replace old valves with new components that “are already on site”.
OR Tambo has also made good progress with the installation of the bypass line, which is scheduled for completion by February 2025, he notes.
According to Khambule, the delay in installation is due to “redesign requirements”, which require environmental impact assessments. “There are procedures that need to be followed when you deal with these processes.”
Backlogs and flight delays
The refuelling problems at OR Tambo started around 10 a.m. on Monday and caused severe international and domestic flight delays.
Several passengers expressed their frustration on social media platforms, complaining of long queues and spending hours in the departure area.
There were also logjams on the apron (the area where aircraft park). Aasa’s Munetsi says that because all the aircraft parking bays were occupied, many arriving aircraft were directed to park on taxiways and await buses to disembark passengers and other transport for baggage.
“Although Acsa has temporarily opened the fuel line, there is a very long backlog of flights to be refuelled,” he adds.
‘Back to normal’
According to Khambule, operations at OR Tambo were supposed to normalise by 8 p.m., with flights returning to their ‘normal schedules’.
“We have made very good progress in addressing the backlog,” he told Moneyweb on Monday night. “Internationally, there is no longer a backlog and domestically, five of the delayed aircraft departed already.”
Update on readiness
The refuelling system issue followed a two-day strike by South African Airways (SAA) pilots the previous week, which affected flights on domestic and regional routes, including those between Johannesburg and Cape Town and Lagos, Mauritius, Namibia, Perth, and São Paulo.
Bloomberg reported that the strike ended on Saturday (7 December) when the SAA Pilots Association and SAA management reached an agreement on a pay increase.
SAA returned to its normal flight schedule on Sunday.
The refuelling issue happened the same week Acsa is planning a media event to reassure the public that it is ready for the peak December holiday season when thousands of local and international passengers descend on airports across the country.
Acsa has invited the media to attend an update of its “comprehensive plan” for the upcoming peak season on Thursday. CEO Mpumi Mpofu will speak about infrastructure performance, operational readiness, and ongoing operational challenges.
Last year, 1 092 248 international passengers travelled through Acsa’s airport network over December, it noted earlier.
Difficult year
South Africa’s aviation sector has had a tumultuous year, with several flight delays experienced at airports around the country, often due to infrastructure problems.
At the end of July, Cape Town airport flights were delayed or diverted due to an hours-long power outage. The cause of the outage was never revealed.
Also in July, the Air Traffic and Navigation Services (ATNS) for instrument-based approaches at South Africa’s airports announced it would undertake maintenance of instrument flight procedures at various airports nationwide.
The subsequent suspension of services disrupted domestic air travel at smaller airports, including George, Kimberley, Polokwane, Mthatha, Upington, East London, Skukuza, and Richards Bay.
This story first appeared in @Moneyweb and is republished with permission.
