South African committee demands urgent SAA financial update
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Businessday
South Africa’s parliamentary appropriations committee is demanding an urgent statement on South African Airways’ finances and cash position, as the airline has announced a second consecutive month of salary delays. The report due on 30 October must also clarify how the 1.1 billion rand from the sale of a Heathrow slot was used and any possible need for state aid, reports the Sunday Times.
The standing committee on appropriations of South Africa’s National Assembly has asked Transport Minister Barbara Creecy for an urgent report on the financial situation and cash position of South African Airways (SAA), the state-owned airline. The request was made in a letter dated 19 October sent by the committee’s chair, Mmusi Maimane, reports the Sunday Times.
Barbara Creecy must submit the report by 30 October. It must detail SAA’s current financial situation and cash position, as well as the findings of the 2025–2026 audit. The committee is also seeking explanations about the use of the approximately 1.1 billion rand generated by the sale of a slot at Heathrow Airport in London, and about any possible new request for state aid.
The request comes as SAA informed its staff of salary delays for the second consecutive month. Two days after the letter, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced a one-billion-rand state guarantee for the airline. The committee had already demanded a report on SAA’s cash position in its previous request to the South African Parliament.
