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The South African Civil Aviation Authority has lifted the suspension of the Air Operator Certificate for Comair, after a five-day-long suspension of flights by British Airways and Kulula.com.
In a statement on Wednesday, SACAA said it had concluded the assessment and evaluation of Comair’s evidence “to close the Level 1 findings” raised with the operator during an audit earlier this month.
“The evaluation of the evidence was concluded on the evening of 16 March 2022. The impact of this outcome paves the way for the Director of Civil Aviation to uplift the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) of Comair with immediate effect,” SACCAA said.
The Aviation Authority said it had conducted the audit following a spate of occurrences that posed safety risks by Kulula.com and BA Comair airlines.
“The Regulator sought to confirm Comair’s compliance with applicable Civil Aviation Regulations.”
“The inspection was also aimed at reviewing Comair’s safety management systems (SMS) and quality control management system (QA) to establish compliance related to the reporting, analysis, and follow-up on occurrences, and corrective action plans to prevent a recurrence,” it said.
“The Director of Civil Aviation heralds the commitment shown by the Regulator’s inspectorate team from the first day of the audit leading up to the sleepless nights spent evaluating evidence all in the interest of ensuring aviation safety.”
"The cooperation and commitment of the Operator during this period signalled the seriousness in which the Operator took this matter and the openness displayed in the days leading up to this day. It is this collaboration that ensures that civil aviation safety remains a top priority in South Africa," the SACAA statement said.
British Airways and kulula.com announced on Twitter that flights would start operating again on Thursday.
