A recent low flyover by two Airlink passenger jets before a rugby match at Cape Town’s DHL Stadium, which raised safety concerns, is currently under review. The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) announced on Wednesday that they have gathered flight data recordings and requested additional information from Airlink for assessment purposes. Once the review is concluded, a comprehensive report with recommendations will be released.
Following the flyover at the Springboks-All Blacks rugby match on Aug. 29, which received a positive response from the crowd of around 56,000, video footage from spectators inside and around the stadium circulated online, sparking a discussion on safety risks. Airlink has decided to cancel plans for another flyover at the upcoming rugby match in Soweto, as stated by SACAA, the regulatory body overseeing aviation safety and security.
Airlink emphasized that the flyover was meticulously planned and rehearsed with safety as the top priority throughout the process. Each aircraft had three senior captains with over 75,000 combined flight hours among the crews, as per Airlink’s statement on Wednesday. Earlier this week, Airlink provided the flight data from the airplanes’ black boxes to the civil aviation authority for scrutiny.
“We never intended to attract attention or overshadow Rugby’s greatest rivalry,” said Airlink CEO de Villiers Engelbrecht, acknowledging both the excitement generated by the event and the subsequent valid inquiries and concerns raised.
The airline had submitted applications for three flyovers, with the most recent one in Cape Town being the second, following the first flyover in Johannesburg on Aug. 22. Both flyovers received approval in adherence to the special air events requirements. Airlink has also retracted its application for a flyover scheduled on Sept. 5 over Johannesburg’s FNB Stadium due to unfavorable weather conditions for a safe formation flyby.
Stadium flyovers during major rugby matches are a longstanding tradition in South African rugby, tracing back to the 1995 Rugby World Cup final in Johannesburg. Notably, last Saturday’s flyby, which garnered international attention, was particularly striking and prompted some aviation experts to question the margin for error left by the aircraft.
