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Four people were injured, two critically, in the crash of a South African Airlink Jetstream 41 turboprop Thursday. The aircraft had just departed Durban on a positioning flight to Pietermaritzburg when the crew declared an emergency due to an engine failure. The airplane crashed near a school perimeter shortly after. Both pilots were injured critically, and a flight attendant suffered serious injuries. An employee working on the school’s grounds was also slightly injured. There were no passengers aboard. | |
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Fifteen airline flight crew members have been arrested after cocaine was found in baggage — the second such incident in a month. The South African Airways employees were detained after 11 pounds of the drug — worth about $355,000 — was discovered in a bag on a flight from Johannesburg. Crew members were arrested after U.K. Border Agency officers made the discovery at Heathrow Airport in London. On Jan. 21, a 15-member flight crew from the same airline was detained after cocaine and cannabis worth $440,000 was found in three bags. | |
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South African Airways (SAA)(Johannesburg) is planning to submit a request for proposals (RFP) to Airbus and Boeing for a new medium and long-range fleet plan. The RFP is to be submitted later this month, at which point the carrier will outline the number of aircraft sought, as well as purchase and funding scenarios, which is likely to involve a mix of out-right aircraft purchases and leasing arrangements. SAA could seek to initiate a competitive bidding process between Boeing and Airbus, probably built around the B787 and A350, later this year, both of which are viewed as considerably more fuel efficient than the current operational fleet. SAA might also consider the purchase of Airbus’ super jumbo, the A380. | |
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A legal battle between South African Airways (Johannesburg) and Nationwide Airlines (Lanseria) has been quietly settled out of court. Nationwide had sued for an undisclosed amount, alleging that SAA’s incentive schemes for travel agents constituted an abuse of its dominant position and was designed to exclude or impede rivals in the domestic market. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. | |
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