The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is required to ensure that flying in South Africa is safe. At times extreme action may be required, regardless of cost.
The grounding of the entire Nationwide fleet on November 30 left as many as 6Â 000 passengers stranded and severely inconvenienced. At the time of writing, it is unclear when Nationwide will be cleared to fly again, but with each day on the ground, the chances of its survival are reduced.
Is this justified?
The heart of the problem lies in Nationwide’s maintenance record-keeping. During routine inspections, the CAA identified some shortcomings and gave Nationwide an opportunity to fix the problems. The primary safety concern is the ability to trace the provenance of key parts. Given that an original Boeing bolt may cost $100, while a seemingly identical pirate part could be made for $1, the incentive for fraud is enormous.
The engine separation from flight CE723 on November 7 brought these issues into sharp focus. The failure of a mounting bolt opened the door to speculation that a non-original part had been used. Only a board of inquiry will be able to determine what happened.
After the engine incident, the CAA acted decisively, issuing an emergency directive requiring the inspection of all South African-registered Boeing 737-200s and DC9s. In these inspections an untraceable part was found in a Nationwide 737 engine mount. Suddenly the problem was no longer one of dodgy record-keeping. What had, up to then, simply been a hypothetical possibility now became a real untraceable part, reposing like a bomb in the engine mount.
Nationwide investigated and said that the action was not justified. It argued that some engine mounting bolts had their part numbers stamped into them by the manufacturer, while others had the numbers inscribed with indelible dye. When the offending bolt was removed and studied, they claimed, the remnants of its numbers were identified, proving it to be genuine.
Like a suspicious athlete’s urine sample, however, it is not known whether this particular bolt was removed under the close supervision of the CAA, which may decide not to accept this argument. Furthermore, by Nationwide’s own admission there are still problems with its maintenance record-keeping and it is only now appointing a quality assurance task team.
Nationwide had 8,8% of the domestic passenger market. If it is forced to close the remaining airlines will benefit. Some see the combined hand of arch-rival SAA and its shareholder, the state, behind the grounding. But this seems highly improbable.
Low-cost carriers are usually privately owned and lack the capital to buy new planes. As a result, they purchase older aircraft, which are 25% less fuel efficient (and noisier), forcing operators to run much tighter cost controls to be competitive. Ensuring that these older planes are safe requires rigorous maintenance regimes. Supporters of the low-cost carriers argue that while Mango (and SAA) maintenance is paid for by taxpayers, Nationwide owner Vernon Bricknell writes out each maintenance cheque himself.
Nationwide also argues — with considerable support from industry experts — that the CAA has overreacted. In particular, the airline says the CAA did not need to ground the Boeing 767 used on the London-Johannesburg route. The accusation of overreaction is given credibility by the CAA having all too often been accused of allowing standards to decline owing to the loss of experienced staff, particularly inspectors.
But each year the CAA is subject to audit by the major international aviation authorities. If it cannot meet their standards, all South African-based international flights will be grounded. The most recent Federal Aviation Administration and International Civil Aviation Organisation audits of the CAA revealed a number of shortcomings, particularly in terms of inspectors. The CAA is aggressively recruiting to remedy these deficiencies. It is possible that the Nationwide shutdown comes as a result of the CAA needing to appear strong and decisive.
Whatever the truth, it is safe to assume that if the November 7 engine separation had ended tragically, the CAA would have been pilloried and the public would be screaming for action. South Africa needs a strong, competent aviation authority to ensure safety in the air.
Guy Leitch is the publisher of SA Flyer magazine